Something New
by Bear-Bell
Summary: Go Mi Nam never had surgery, so he never went to the U.S. But it must be fate, because his sister still ends up living in the dorms with him and the other members of A.N. Jell. A/U.
1. Chapter 1

She was late. She was so, _so_ late!

But she had been so nervous, so scared! She thought that if she took a few moments to meditate, to pray, she would gain clarity, calm, and confidence.

Clarity, calm, and confidence weren't to be had, though. Thinking on the matter had only made it worse.

What if Rome didn't want her? What if she fit as well there as she did here, in her home? Go Mi Nyu heard the sisters' murmurs. They never said anything truly cruel or false, really, but it still made her feel bad when they called her klutzy and air headed, no matter how true it was.

She tried, really she did, and Mother Superior said that as long as she kept faith and stayed true to herself, everything would turn out okay in the end. But no matter how hard she prayed or how hard she tried to do right, nothing ever seemed to go right in the end.

And now, she was missing her plane to Rome.

"Oh no, oh no, oh no," she chanted. Then, "Please, please, please," as she ran through the airport towards her departure gate. She hurried as best she could, pulling her suitcase behind her and lifting her skirts so she wouldn't trip over them.

Her effort was for naught, though, because her legs got tangled together, her suitcase began to tip onto it's side, and she tipped forward –

And she fell right into someone's chest, knocking them backwards and sending their bags to the floor, along with her own.

"Watch it – Oh. Sister-"

"I'm not a Sister yet," she automatically interrupted. "I'm so sorry, but my plane-"

Even as she spoke, she could hear the third boarding announcement for her flight over the loud speakers.

So she ran. If she missed her flight – If she didn't make it to Rome – what would she do, then? Mother Superior said that nothing in life was certain, and she insisted that Go Mi Nyu see more of the world before making her decision to join the church, but she felt like it was the right thing to do. She left like it was what she was meant to do. But if she missed her flight – What did that mean? What was she supposed to do, then?

Go Mi Nyu sighed in relief as she approached the terminal just as the final boarding call was made.

She was going to make it!

Quickly, she gave the flight attendant her ticket and started towards the plane, only to be stopped.

"Sister?" the attendant called. "I'm sorry, but you're on the wrong plane! Your plane leaves from Gate 4 in half an hour!"

Go Mi Nyu froze, and she flushed with embarrassment.

She'd run all that way – she'd almost knocked someone down! – when she wasn't really late at all. She must have read her watch wrong, or she must have seen her ticket wrong.

She hurried from the terminal, accepting her ticket from the flight attendant and apologizing with a deep bow.

She had time left before her flight – half an hour! She had time to spare!

Maybe she would call Go Mi Nam. His last letter said that he might be moving to Seoul for work. Maybe if she could find his number, she could tell him that she was about to truly begin her journey. And it would be nice to hear his voice before she left for Rome.

She wandered towards Gate 4, looking for a pay phone, when she heard someone cry, "Sister!"

She jumped, turning one way and then the other, looking for the person calling her.

"Sister!" she heard again, from a different direction.

And then, "You! You dropped your ticket!"

"Wha-?"

Go Mi Nyu's voice trailed away as her eyes fell upon one of the most beautiful men she'd ever seen in her life. Tall, with arched eyebrows, broad shoulders, a slim waist, and beautiful dark eyes. He was as beautiful as one of the statues standing in the garden of the Abbey.

He made her loose her voice, but the second man to appear behind him made her loose her breath.

And then, there were three, and she lost all capability of thought.

"We found her!" the blond man cried while raising a triumphant fist into the air.

"We've been looking for you everywhere," the kind faced man told her.

The final man, the one standing in front of her, was frowning. "You should look where you're going. You got our tickets mixed up when you bumped into me earlier-"

"Sheesh, Tae Kyung," the blond murmured. "You should speak more respectfully!"

The man, Tae Kyung, ignored his blond friend and continued. "You got our tickets mixed up, and you're about to miss your plane."

Until now, Go Mi Nyu had been frozen with wonder, but the man's words were like a hard slap to the face – and even as he spoke, the announcement came.

"Flight 333 for Rome is now departing."

Her heart froze. "Oh, no," she breathed.

Tears were welling in her eyes, and a feeling of hopelessness bloomed inside of her chest. "Oh, no," she breathed. "What am I going to do?"

"It's okay," the kind faced man told her. "You can take your ticket to the counter and explain what happened. They'll find a place for you on the next flight."

"R-really?!" she asked.

"Sure-"

An announcement came on over the speakers announcing that another flight was boarding, and all three men came to attention.

"Here," the tall man, Tae Kyung she now knew, snapped, and he snatched the ticket she held out of her hand and replaced it with her _actual_ ticket.

"The ticket counter is that way!" the blond told her as the other two men began to hurry towards Gate 4. "We'd help, but our plane-"

"No! No, it's okay! You've been a great help to me," she assured.

"Oh, good, good. Safe travels, Sister!"

"Oh, I'm not a Sister yet-"

"Jeremy!" one of the other men yelled. "The plane is boarding!"

"Well, good bye," the blond hurried to say, then he was rushing after his friends.

She waved after the three men, smiling.

It was strange how just a few moments ago, she'd felt nothing but hopelessness. But just a few brief moments with those strangers, just a few kind words, and things didn't seem so bad anymore. They had been kind enough to look for her, even though it was almost time for their own plane to leave, and if they hadn't explained that she could board a latter flight, she may have given up completely! It was the minor miracles like those which were Go Mi Nyeo's favorite. Mother Superior called them miracles of kindness. And she had received a miracle of her very own! It must be a sign that even though she had missed her flight, she was on the right path!

But then, at the ticket counter, the attendant told her, "The next flight for Rome leaves tomorrow night at 8:00," and her heart fell once again.

"Tomorrow night?" she asked breathlessly. What was she to do _tonight_, then? She didn't have money for a hotel room, and she didn't want to bother any of the nuns at the local cathedrals – she didn't want to impose on them with such little notice!

Then, the attendant asked, "Is there anyone you can call? Do you have any family or friends in the city who could help you?"

And she remembered her brother. They usually wrote letters to each other, since she didn't have a phone, but she had his phone number to use in case of emergencies. And he said that he'd be moving to Seoul! Maybe she'd get a chance to see him before she left for Rome! They hadn't seen each other in _such_ a long time! It would be good to make sure that he was doing well.

With a bow to the attendant, she found a pay phone. Mi Nam didn't answer his phone when she called, but she was able to leave a message saying that she was at the airport and was wondering if she could stay with him for the night.

She sat outside in the loading zone for only an hour before seeing her twin brother walking towards her, one of his brighter smiles lighting up his face.

"Oppa!" Mi Nyu cried when she saw him. Truly, it had been a long time since she'd seen Mi Nam, but she hadn't realized just how long it had been. He seemed taller than the last time they'd visited, and skinnier, too. But his smile was the same – bright, happy, and mischievous. He had colored his hair a reddish brown, and he looked good. She had _missed_ her brother, so much, and seeing him again made her heart leap.

Mi Nam caught her in a hug when they reached each other, and he nearly picked her up off the ground. "Mi Nyu!" he cried. "I didn't know you were coming to Seoul! You should have called sooner!"

"I know, I'm sorry, Oppa, but I missed my plane and-"

"Your plane?" her brother asked with a frown. "Where are you going?"

"Mi Nam! Didn't you get my letter! I told you I was going to Rome!"

Mi Nam gaped at her. "Today? You were going to Rome _today_? I thought you were only _thinking_ of going to Rome!"

"No, Oppa, I was supposed to leave today! But I missed my flight, and the next flight isn't until tomorrow night-"

"Mi Nyu, you can't," Mi Nam declared. He took her shoulders in a firm grip, as if to keep her held firmly in Korea.

"What? Why not?" she asked.

"Because we're so close! I've made it, Mi Nyu. In a matter of weeks, I'll be famous!"

This was news to Mi Nyu. She knew her brother was a musician, and she knew he had moved to Seoul for a new job, but she hadn't known he was doing so well.

"Congratulations, Mi Nam!" she exclaimed loudly. "I'm so happy for you! I know how hard you've worked for this, I'm glad you're finally getting everything you deserve."

Her brother shook his head at her. "You don't understand at all, do you Mi Nyu? If I'm famous, we'll be able to find our mother. _She'll_ be able to find _us_! Don't you understand? This is our chance, Mi Nyu. So you can't leave. Not yet."

And in an instant, everything changed.

**A/N: I just finished watching You're Beautiful, and I thought it would be fun if we actually got to see the twins in action together. In the show, it sounds like they're a lot alike but complete opposites at the same time, and I thought it would be fun to write all of the trouble they could get into together along with the rest of the gang. The first four or five chapters will follow the show's timeline pretty closely, but after all of the main characters are introduced, things are going to get crazy. I hope you enjoy! Review, please!  
**


	2. Chapter 2

On the first night, they stayed in Mi Nam's hotel room and he explained the situation to his twin.

"My official debut as a member of A.N. Jell is tomorrow night. The other band members are in Japan for an interview right now, but they're returning tomorrow morning."

"So you're moving into the A.N. Jell dorms tomorrow, as well?" Mi Nyu confirmed.

When her brother nodded, she sighed.

"And you're sure they won't mind me staying with you? I don't want to impose-"

"Relax, Sis," Mi Nam laughed. "You're with the band! I'm sure it will be fine. Even if Tae Kyung seems like he's a little uptight, I'm sure he's cool. And besides, you don't have anywhere else to stay. They'll understand."

"Do you think there will be some way I can be useful?" Mi Nyu asked.

Mi Nam shrugged, unconcerned. "You always find ways to make yourself useful, Sis. You'll find some way to help out. Although..."

Mi Nyu frowned as her brother eyed her habit.

"What is it?" she asked.

"You won't be able to dress like a nun while you're staying with us. I know the group is called A.N. Jell, but..."

Mi Nyu frowned. "But, Oppa-"

"Come on, Mi Nyu. You told me earlier that the Mother Superior was encouraging you to see more of the world. Well, with the contract I just signed, I'll be able to help you do that! We can see the city, meet new people, go shopping, and anything else we haven't been able to afford to do before. And we'll get to see more of the world than we ever dreamed of! It will be fun, I promise."

Briefly, Mi Nyu thought of her younger years, when she and her brother had only ever worn second hand clothes and they hadn't been able to afford to go on class field trips. They had been made fun of, sometimes, because their clothes were out of fashion, or their hair was cut too traditionally, or they hadn't gone to places where other children had gone a dozen times before.

Mi Nyu had never believed that material possessions truly made people happy. Regardless, though, she had always missed having the _option_ of having those material possessions... And if she had the opportunity to do something good while she was staying with her brother, then...

"Come on, Mi Nyu," her brother said, and he used _the pout_. He used that sad, needy expression that he only ever used on his sister. The expression made him seem young and vulnerable, and he had too much pride to use it on most people, but he was shameless when it came to Mi Nyu.

"Besides," he added, "Who knows when we'll see each other again, after you go to Rome. Who knows how long it will be until our paths cross again! So we should take advantage of our time together. We'll go shopping tomorrow before I have to go to the press conference, and we can see some of the city, okay?"

And she caved. "Alright, Oppa. I'll stay. And while I'm staying with you, we'll have fun."

At this, her brother smiled. But it wasn't one of his big happy smiles. It was one of his quirky mischievous smiles, and Mi Nyu couldn't help but sigh.

"Oppa, what are you planning?" she asked.

"Nothing, sis. I only intend to show you a bit of the world."

* * *

The next day, they went shopping.

Mi Nam bought more for himself than he did for his sister, but that was because Mi Nyu didn't really know what she _wanted_ for herself. She kept picking out skirts and sweaters, and her brother kept saying, "You shouldn't wear _that_. You'll be spending your days with rock stars, not old women. Wear this, instead."

Except, the clothing her brother suggested she wear was positively indecent. He showed her short skirts, flimsy tops, and strapped heels. When she voiced her complaints, Mi Nam scoffed.

"You're my sister. Do you honestly believe I would ever let you wear anything vulgar? No, Mi Nyu, you're just not used to wearing clothes which actually fit you properly."

Then, he sent her to one of the store employees to help her pick out clothing while he looked at jeans.

After the female clerk helped her pick out a few skirts and dresses and gave her advise about which clothing was the most flattering to Mi Nyu's figure and which wasn't, Mi Nyu realized that her brother was right. The shortest skirt she tried on was only an inch above her knees, and the most revealing top was completely opaque, but very form fitting. After the clerk denied her several floppy (but not in a flattering way) tops and pointed her to other form fitting, comfortable, much more flattering shirts, Mi Nyu felt more at ease with trying on clothes and choosing for herself.

Still, she had a feeling she'd be borrowing a lot of pants and sweaters from her brother in the next few weeks. His clothes looked way more comfortable than her skirts and dresses, and besides, after years of wearing hand me downs, she was used to wearing large clothing.

At the hotel before the press conference, Mi Nyu watched her brother try on a dozen different outfits before he settled on one and began to get ready to leave.

"I thought you said they had a uniform for you to wear during the press conference," she said as she watched him choose which hat he wanted to wear.

"I'm choosing what to wear for the party tonight," he informed her. "This will be the first time I really spend time with my new band mates and coworkers. I want to make a good first impression."

Mi Nyu's eyebrows rose at his confession. Her brother was usually very easy going and laid back. He was the kind of person who didn't have to put much effort into his appearance but looked cool regardless.

"Oppa, are you nervous?" she asked, her eyes widening as she came to that realization.

Mi Nam _never_ got nervous! Even when he was uncomfortable, he was able to dismiss awkward situations with a light joke or a few easy words. She'd never even known him to suffer from any kind of performance anxiety! Back when they were in school together, Mi Nam could sing just as easily in front of two people as two hundred.

At her question, Mi Nam sighed. "Mi Nyu, I told you, this is _it_. If this works out, I'll be working with some of the greatest musicians in the country, every opportunity will be available to me, and... we could find our mother. If this doesn't go well, I don't know what I'll do..."

Mi Nyu was by her brother's side in an instant. "Oppa, you're ready for this. You've been working towards this goal since we were children. You're a great musician, you're a great performer, and you're a great person. No one deserves this opportunity more than you, and no one could do better."

At her words, Mi Nam gave her another rare smile that was only for her, filled with love, gratefulness, and happiness.

It only lasted for a moment before her brother's performance smile overtook his expression, and he became cool, cocky, and playful.

"Thanks, Sis," he told her. "Look, it's time for me to go, but your name is on the guest list for the club. I'll see you there and tell you how everything went, okay?"

"Sure, Oppa! See you then!" she replied with a smile, and she waved as he left the room.

When he was gone, she sighed and sat heavily on the bed.

Mi Nam had convinced her to stay by promising that they might meet their mother. Then, he'd pointed out that they should spend time together before she went to live in Rome.

But she was beginning to understand that maybe he wanted her to stay with him because he needed her. Maybe he was scared.

It was understandable, she thought. From what he'd told her about the band he was joining, they were very popular, and they had been for years. He was already under a lot of pressure to do well, especially since so many people would be watching him right from the beginning.

He was being thrown into a new environment with new people, and he was expected to immediately fit in and fit in well. He would even be living with _three_ new roommates, and if those roommates didn't like having him around, they could throw him out just as easily as they had invited him in.

Mi Nyeo resolutely nodded as she decided that she would be there for her brother, and she would do everything she could to make sure he fit in and did well in this new place.

* * *

She had never been to a club before. The lighting was dim, with only a few areas bathed in colorful lights.

Her brother and his new band mates weren't there yet – they needed to change after their press conference, Mi Nam had told her. But there were already a number of other people milling around the dance floor and bar.

Mi Nyeo felt over dressed when she saw the other women in the club. They wore short dresses and skirts made of colorful sheer fabric and covered with glitter and sequins. She was in a calve length skirt, a long sleeve shirt, and a light jacket, all in muted blue and pink colors. Everyone around her was well dressed, colorful, and well made up. She had curled her hair, but the other women were wearing their hair up, and if they wore their hair down, they had bright, colorful pins artfully pinning strands of hair away from their faces.

And she was very, very alone.

Everyone else stood in groups, either swaying to the music playing over the speakers or talking with each other at tables or near the bar. Mi Nyu had never been in such an environment before, and she didn't know what to do with herself.

"You must be Go Mi Nyu," someone said from behind her.

She turned and blinked up at a tall, well dressed woman. Her hair was long and frizzy, she wore a long, tight dress, tall heels, and she stood watching Mi Nyu with her hands on her hips and a calculating glint in her eyes.

"I, um, yes. Do I know you?"

"Not yet you don't. I'm Coordinator Wang, the fashion specialist for A.N. Jell. Your brother asked me to come to the club early, and I can see why. Did you bring anything else to wear?"

Mi Nyeo shifted uncomfortably and pulled at the shirtsleeves of her jacket. "Um, no. I sent my suitcases to the dorms along with my brother's."

Coordinator Wang gave a long sigh. "I'll have my work cut out for me, then. I have some leggings you can wear, but you're small." And then, the strange woman set her hands on Mi Nyu's chest, right over her breasts. Mi Nyu flinched away from the contact, watching the woman with wide eyes as she said, "You wouldn't fit in any of my shirts. You'll have to wear the shirt you're wearing now. But I know where to find a jacket and heels for you."

"Heels?" Mi Nyu squeaked. "I-I've never worn heals before-"

"So then don't dance," the woman commanded as she took Mi Nyu's wrist and began to pull her towards the back of the club. "Just walk slowly and carefully until you know what you're doing."

Mi Nyu was led to the bathroom and shoved into a stall. Coordinator Wang threw some leggings over the stall door, then went to find a jacket and heels for Mi Nyu.

It should have taken her only a moment to change, but when she grabbed the leggings, she found herself unable to put them on. The fabric was thin and a shiny gray color. She had to admit they would look good with the vividly blue shirt she was already wearing, but she was terrified to put the leggings on. She had never, _ever_ worn anything as thing fitting and reveling as those leggings. They would show every curve, every muscle – they would show her butt!

She was still holding the fabric when Coordinator Wang came back into the bathroom.

"Go Mi Nyu?" the woman called. "Are you wearing the leggings? Come out and let me see them!"

"One – one minuet!" Mi Nyu answered, and she finally began to change.

When Coordinator Wang saw her, the woman nodded at the leggings, then helped Mi Nyu into her borrowed heels and jacket.

"Much better," the older woman sighed. "I can actually see the resemblance between you and your brother now. He's such a cutie, and so patient about doing his hair and makeup. Although, he's so cute I hardly have to do anything at all. Take your brother's example, Go Mi Nyu. Be still and patient while I work my magic."

Sure enough, when Mi Nyu was still and compliant for the older woman, her hair and makeup was finished within only moments.

Go Mi Nyu looked like a different person. She was... feminine, in a way she never had been before. Coordinator Wang had only put a little eye liner and lipstick on her, and she had set Mi Nyu's hair up in a simple but cute bun with her bangs neatly framing her face. But it made all the difference.

"Wow," Coordinator Wang murmured. "With eyeliner and your hair up, you really do look exactly like your brother. I didn't see the resemblance when I first saw you – I never would have guessed you two were related. I wouldn't have found you if he hadn't told me you'd be the most conservatively dressed person in the room. But now..."

Mi Nyeo couldn't stop staring at herself in the mirror. Coordinator Wang was right. She really did look like her brother, especially when she wore eyeliner.

"Wow. Thank you, Coordinator Wang," Mi Nyu whispered. "I've never worn makeup before."

The woman shrugged. "Simple but sweet – it suits you. Now, your brother and the rest of A.N. Jell should already be here. I'll escort you out. Oh, and call me Unnie from now on. I have the feeling that we will get along splendidly."

Mi Nyu nodded as the older woman pulled her from the bathroom and towards the tables, but the coordinator paid her no mind.

The heels weren't as bad as Mi Nyu thought they'd be. They were uncomfortable, yes, and she stumbled a couple of times in the hallway before they reached the main club, but once she mastered walking heel-to-toe, it wasn't so hard.

Her brother was sitting at a crowded table surrounded by people. At the sight of him, she was flooded with relief.

She imagined he felt the same way when he saw her. Neither of them were very comfortable in situations where they were crowded by people they didn't know. Mi Nam was better about meeting new people than she was, though. No matter how uneasy he felt, her brother was still able to smile and engage in simple conversation, while in the same situation she was left stuttering and blushing.

As she walked towards him, Mi Nam easily excused himself from the conversation and slid away from the table.

"I didn't recognize you for a moment," he teased when he reached her. "You know, you're almost as tall as me when you wear heels."

That wasn't true – he still had a good two inches on her.

"How was your press conference?" she asked.

"It went well," he told her with a wide grin. "I made a good impression on the reporters, at least. Tae Kyung has been irritated with me all night, though. Whenever I say something to him, he either rolls his eyes or ignores me all together."

Mi Nyu frowned. She wondered if her brother had said anything to make his band mate upset, but at the same time she doubted it. Mi Nam was really nice, and he was so shy around new people that he didn't speak often enough to offend anyone.

"Hey, you ready to meet the guys?" Mi Nam asked her. "They already said it was okay if you stayed in the dorms with me, as long as you follow the house rules."

"Oh! Well, then yeah!"

Mi Nam led her to group's table, where five men were sitting and looking at her curiously. Mi Nam introduced them, saying, "That's our manager, Ma Hoon Yi. There's Tae Kyung, President Ahn Seong Cheng, Shin Woo, and Jeremy."

And upon her introduction to her brother's new band mates, she was once again left speechless. Because there were the three angles she'd crossed paths with at the airport.

"Wow!" the blond, Jeremy, cried. "Go Mi Nam really _does_ have a twin sister! You two look exactly alike!"

"It's nice to meet you, Go Mi Nyu," the kind faced Shin Woo told her. "Your brother says you'll be staying in the dorms with us?"

She didn't immediately respond, still in a daze from seeing the handsome, kind people who had helped her the day before. It wasn't until her brother pinched her arms that she was able to speak up.

"Oh, yes! Thank you so much for having me! I'm really grateful! My brother and I haven't really seen each other since we were in high school, so it will be nice to catch up with him!"

"Sit, Mi Nyu," her brother demanded, pushing her into the booth to sit next to the group's manager. "My sister's never been to a club before, so make sure she's comfortable," he commanded the older man.

My Nyu immediately began shaking her head. "Oh, you don't have to worry about me, Manager Ma! Just enjoy your night!"

"Nonsense!" the man chuckled. "It's no problem! A friend of Go Mi Nam is a friend of mine! Welcome!"

She nodded gratefully as her brother slid into the booth beside her and poured her a drink.

"Have you ever even had alcohol?" Mi Nam asked her as he poured just a few sips of a sweet white wine into her glass.

"We drink wine during communion, Oppa," she reminded him. "We've both been sipping wine for years."

Mi Nam rolled his eyes. "A sip of communion wine doesn't count, Mi Nyu. Communion isn't the same as drinking a glass at dinner or at the bar. Here, try this. But take it easy, okay?"

"Yes, Oppa. Thank you."

Despite the wine being described as sweet, it seemed bitter when she tried it, and she couldn't help from pulling a face at the taste.

But it was her brother's night, his celebration, and his first night spending time with his new band mates. She wanted him to have a good time tonight, and she didn't want to embarrass him. So she drank the wine without too much fuss and used her brother and the manager as a sort of wall of protection from the strangers filling the club.

The manager was nice enough, if not a little immature and outspoken.

At one point in the evening, after she had had three glasses of wine and she was feeling delightfully fuzzy, the man turned to her with a bright smile and said, "You must feel very fortunate!"

"How do you mean?" she asked, thinking of the flight she had missed.

"You'll be living with the members of A.N. Jell! Most girls would kill to be in your position! Are you a fan?"

"A fan? Of A.N. Jell? Um... I'd never actually heard of them before my brother told me he'd been accepted into the group."

The manager's eyes widened. "You've never heard of A.N. Jell? Really?" he asked loudly, and for a moment, all conversation at the table stopped.

"Is that true?" Jeremy asked.

"Have you been living under a rock?"

At these words, Mi Nyu looked to Tae Kyung with wide eyes. The man was sneering and rolling his eyes, and his disgust was almost palpable. She realized that he was probably offended, and she regretted that she hadn't listened to any of A.N. Jell's albums before attending the celebration.

Then, Mi Nam spoke. "My sister has been living at a nunnery for the past few years," he told the group. "They don't allow popular music there. She only knows traditional hymns and carols. My sister has never even worn makeup before," he teased, bumping her arm with his own to show that he wasn't being mean by saying as much.

"You're in for a treat then!" President Ahn told her with a wide smile. "A.N. Jell is fantastic! The best!"

"You'll attend band practice with your brother, right?" Manager Ma asked eagerly. "Once you hear their music, you'll like it immediately!"

Blushing under all the attention, she stuttered, "Oh, of course. I need to support my brother!"

With this statement, the conversation turned to other topics and attention was diverted from her. Mi Nyu was able sit back and relax. She liked watching her brother as he talked and joked with Jeremy and Shin Woo. They spoke easily and seemed to be getting along well.

She laughed when Manager Ma ran up to the stage where a group was preforming and waved his arms to get their attention, then ran back and bragged after one of them touched his hand. She smiled when Jeremy, Shin Woo, and Mi Nam went to dance. Shin Woo and Jeremy taught Mi Nam some of their moves, and they seemed to be having fun dancing with other people on the dance floor.

However, after three more glasses of wine, Mi Nyu wasn't having so much fun. Instead of fuzzy, she felt stuffy. And where watching people dance and listening to them talk had left her feeling giddy before, now she was dizzy and she couldn't really follow the conversation happening around her.

Mi Nyu went to the bathroom hoping that some cold water against her face would make her feel better. But it wasn't enough. She needed to get away from the noise and bright, flickering colors in the club, so she found the door to the roof and made her way to the patio upstairs.

She laughed when she saw that her brother was already there, lying on a bench and giggling to himself as he looked into the sky.

"Oppa," she called. "Help me over! I want to sit with you!"

His head flopped towards her and he smiled. He continued to giggle as he pushed himself upright and began to stumble towards her. Once he reached her, they leaned against each other, their feet tangling and clumsy as they made their way back to the bench.

"Oppa, did you have a lot of wine, as well?" Mi Nyu asked.

Her brother laughed in response. "Sis, I think I had twice as many glasses as you, filled with twice as much wine! You're such a light weight!"

"Well, yeah," she murmured, frowning in confusion at the unfamiliar phrase her brother was using. "I've always been smaller than you," she reminded him.

For a few moments, he blinked sightlessly at her, then he burst out laughing. "I forgot how funny you were, Mi Nyu!" her brother declared. "I'm glad we'll get to live together again. I never liked that you stayed at the Convent after school. I wished you had come with me."

This was a familiar conversation. Her decision to stay at the orphanage, and his decision to leave, had resulted in one of the only fights they had ever had.

Mi Nyu pinched her brother before he could continue his line of thought.

"Ow!" he cried. "What was that for?!"

"This," she declared solemnly, "is a celebration. No fighting allowed."

"Yeah, yeah," he grumbled. Then, brightening, he asked her, "How far up do you think that stick is?"

"What stick?" Mi Nyu asked absently as she leaned back to blink up at the stars.

"The stick in Tae Kyung's ass!" her brother shouted uproariously.

"Mi Nam!" Mi Nyu cried in indignation. At her brother's language, her head snapped towards him to level him with a disapproving frown, but the motion made her dizzy, and she had a feeling that much of the impact of her frown was lost as she swayed from side to side.

"I'm right here you know."

Mi Nyu whipped around to look at the aforementioned Tae Kyung, and she would have fallen off of the bench if her brother hadn't grabbed her arm.

Tae Kyung pushed away from the railing he was leaning against, and Mi Nyu's eyes widened when she saw him moving towards the bench she was sharing with her brother.

In response to his band mate's statement, Mi Nam cried, "Yeah! I know!" while laughing at the other man's indignant expression.

"At least you have the nerve to insult me to my face rather than talking about me behind my back," Tae Kyung sneered.

"Relax, man," Mi Nam demanded even as he continued to chuckle. "I'm just messing with you."

"Don't be rude, Oppa," Mi Nyu told her brother with a pout. "You should be nice to your new band mates."

Mi Nam waved his sister off. In her drunken confusion, Mi Nyu thought her brother was moving to hit her (for how well they got along, Mi Nam had attacked her constantly when they were younger), and she stood from the bench and stumbled away in order to avoid his flailing hands.

Her brother scowled at her. "I told Manager-ma not to let you drink too much," Mi Nam said with a pout.

"President Ahn kept refilling her glass," Tae Kyung reported, sending his own frown Mi Nyu's way. "He thinks that if she's happy, you'll be happy."

Mi Nam paused thoughtfully. "Well, yeah," he agreed while blinking at his sister. "I don't think being drunk is making her very happy, though," he noted as his sister abruptly ran to the far balcony and threw up over the side of the building.

"Ugh," Tae Kyung muttered while shivering in disgust.

"There you are," a new voice noted, and the two men looked over to the roof's entrance to watch as Shin Woo and Jeremy wandered out onto the rooftop balcony.

Shin Woo walked towards the two men, but Jeremy paused when he saw Go Mi Nyu clinging to the railing. "Is she feeling alright?" he asked with a frown.

Shin Woo finally noticed the girl, and he frowned. "I told President Ahn not to keep giving her wine," he said with a sigh.

Mi Nam stood on unsteady feet and lurched towards his sister. "Mi Nyu!" he called. "Come this way! You're going to fall off the roof if you lean over any further."

"Would not!" she pouted, and the four men were horrified when she climbed onto the middle rung of the balcony's railing. "Look how close the stars are!" she demanded. "I could touch them from this high up!"

Then, of course, she began to tip backwards, and the four men surged forwards to catch her before she could fall.

Of course, it wasn't that easy.


	3. Chapter 3

When Mi Nyu woke up, it was with a happy, contented sigh. Her head was pounding, her stomach was rolling, and her skin felt tacky and clammy. But her discomfort was worth it, she though, if that was the price for waking up surrounded by such beauty.

Then, her pillow groaned, and she jerked upright. Her stomach turned over at the motion, and before she could fully process that she had been sleeping across her brother's stomach while surrounded by the three other members of his band, she lurched to her feet and ran to find a bathroom before she threw up all over any of the sleeping men.

"Let that be a lesson to you, young lady!" her brother called after her as she finally settled for leaning over the kitchen sink (she'd opened two doors in the unfamiliar apartment, and neither of them had led to a bathroom, so kitchen sink it was). "You don't have to drink just because people are putting alcohol in front of you!"

"Ugh, Go Mi Nam, quiet." Mi Nyu could barely hear one of the other men complaining to her brother over the sound of the running water in the sink. Her stomach was still roiling, though, so she hurried to find a proper bathroom and a proper toilet. The next two doors she tired were _not_ bathrooms, but she was lucky on the third (technically the fifth) try.

In the common area, Jeremy said, "It's too early for this. Someone turn off the sun."

"Stop complaining, Jeremy," Shin Woo responded. "You hardly drank anything last night."

"We didn't get home until three in the morning," Jeremy responded with a whine. "Just because I didn't drink doesn't mean I shouldn't still be asleep!"

"This isn't my room. _Why_ am I on the floor?" Tae Kyung snarled as the voices around him woke him up.

"You're heavy," Jeremy responded. "You're lucky we got you this far into the house. I wasn't carrying you upstairs to your room."

Go Mi Nam sighed. "What happened? My sister clearly didn't meet her untimely death, but I can't remember..."

"You and your sister are menaces," Tae Kyung replied.

"You fell on us while running to your sister," Jeremy complained to Mi Nam.

"And your sister fell on Tae Kyung, knocking him out," Shin Woo finished.

Mi Nam was just as hung over at his sister, but that didn't keep him from winking at Tae Kyung and saying, "Tight ass to the rescue, huh?"

"Shut up," Tae Kyung replied with a vicious frown.

"You hear that, Mi Nyu?" Mi Nam called as he struggled to his feet. "One of the most attractive, sought after men in the country tried to catch your fall, and you knocked him out!"

"Stop teasing, Oppa!" Mi Nyu demanded from behind the closed bathroom door. In the living room, the men heard her murmur, "Lord, give me strength."

"You should pray for alcohol tolerance, instead," her brother told her as she finally stumbled out of the bathroom. "Drink some water, take some aspirin, and go back to sleep. I doubt you'll be up for any more adventures today while you're nursing that hang over."

"I'm never drinking again," Mi Nyu swore as she allowed her brother to show her to the room they would be sharing in the dorms.

Her brother chuckled as he led her upstairs towards the private rooms. "I doubt that, sis. After you sleep and eat, you'll feel right as rain."

"I'm stealing your pants," Mi Nyu declared once they were in their room. "I can't believe you let me sleep in the clothes I wore last night. These aren't even mine."

Her brother shrugged. "I was too drunk to help you change. And even if I was drunk, I wasn't going to let any of those weirdos help you."

"Don't call them weirdos," Mi Nyu insisted. "They seem nice."

"They know I don't mean it," Mi Nam said dismissively. "Well, Jeremy and Shin Woo know I don't mean it. Tae Kyung wouldn't know a joke if it punched him in the face."

After she was dressed in some of her brothers sweats, Mi Nyu collapsed on her brother's bed with a sigh. "I need to apologize. Is it true I knocked him out?"

"I guess so," Mi Nam answered with a chuckle as he rummaged through his suitcases, looking for a towel and his shower bag. "We had quite the party last night. Jeremy had to carry Tae Kyung to the van, and I remember _trying_ to carrying you, but I could hardly walk strait. Shin Woo was worried I would drop you on your head. Manager-ma ended up having to help me walk to the van."

"What a mess," Mi Nyugrumbled, then pushed herself upright.

"Where do you think _you're_ going?" Mi Nam snapped, stopping his sister from getting out of bed and going for the door.

"To _apologize_. On both of our behaves, since you sound so proud of yourself," she groused.

"Rest first," Mi Nam demanded. "Let those guys wake up, and let Tae Kyung calm down. I doubt anyone's in the mood for social niceties just now."

Mi Nyu wanted to argue, but she ultimately allowed her brother to push her back towards the bed and tuck her in. "We'll talk to them latter," he promised.

* * *

Mi Nyu was awoken by the smell of food.

"Shin Woo made you something greasy. It'll make you feel better," her brother informed her as he set a bowl and chopsticks at a table for her.

She stumbled towards the food, feeling as if she were half dead. And when she caught sight of herself in the mirror, she saw that she was still wearing her makeup from the night before. The way it was smeared all over her face, combined with her greasy hair and sickly skin, she _looked_ half dead, as well. However, after eating, drinking another glass of water, and taking a shower, she felt a great deal better.

"Why do you have so many pictures of yourself?" she asked her brother as they began unpacking their suitcases and settling into the room. Mi Nyu was a little unsettled by the huge pictures of Mi Nam which decorated several of the walls.

Her brother chuckled. "They were already here when I moved in. Someone else decorated the room for me."

"And they decorated it with pictures of you?" Mi Nyu asked with a frown.

"You should see how many pictures of himself Tae Kyung has in _his _room," her brother chuckled.

And Mi Nyu sighed. "I still need to apologize for my behavior last night. Has Tae Kyung calmed down any?"

Her brother shrugged. "He's been sulking all day. Apparently, wounding his pride is worse than _physically_ wounding him."

"His pride?" Mi Nyu asked.

"Yeah. He passed out and had to be carried home, remember?"

"But that wasn't his fault," Mi Nyeo argued. "I fell on him and knocked him out, right?"

Mi Nam chuckled. "Apparently, Jeremy and Shin Woo left out some key details while retelling the story this morning. Tae Kyung wasn't knocked out. When you fell, you accidentally kissed him. You kissed him, and _then_ he passed out, and he had to be carried home."

And suddenly, Mi Nyu remembered. She remembered trying to touch the stars, and then falling, and turning, and she remembered her lips pressing against someone else's as arms wrapped around her. It hadn't felt like a kiss, though. It had felt like a battle, or an attack, because of the pain. When she'd woken up that morning, she thought the ache in her nose and jaw were just part of her hangover, but apparently that ache was an after effect of smashing her face into someone else's.

Mortified, she hid her face in her hands. "Oh, no," she groaned.

Behind her, Mi Nam chuckled. "At least you had an excuse for passing out. If that guy thinks I'm ever going to let him forget that he _fainted_ from a _kiss_, he's got another thing coming."

"Mi Nam, don't," Mi Nyu begged. "I feel horrible – what if I hurt him?! And you need to at least _try_ getting along with your band mates. You don't want him to be angry with you!"

"Why not?" Mi Nam asked. "His temper tantrums are his problem, not mine!"

"Ugh," Mi Nyu sighed. "You are such a stubborn... You are such a stubborn _guy!_"

Mi Nyu wasn't sure what else to say on the matter. There was no explanation for her brother's behavior this afternoon. He was acting ridiculous! Mi Nyu had never seen him like this, not once in their entire lives. It sounded like he was _purposefully _antagonizing Tae Kyung! And it didn't make sense. Mi Nam was one of the nicest people Mi Nyu knew. He got along with _everybody_. He _liked_ everybody.

When Mi Nam responded to his sister's proclamation by staying stubbornly silent, she sighed. "Well _I'm_ going to apologize."

"You don't have anything to apologize for!" Mi Nam argued.

"My behavior last night was disgraceful!" Mi Nyu argued. "I drank way more than I should have-"

"You couldn't have known that drinking so much would have that effect on you!"

"-and as I result, I fell on Tae Kyung. If his face hurts as much as mine did this morning, then he deserves an apology!"

Mi Nam groaned but said, "Fine, fine. If it makes you feel better, then go apologize."

"Apologizing isn't about making yourself feel better," Mi Nyu informed her brother. "It's about making amends because it's the right thing to do."

"I know, I know," he sighed. "You go do the right thing, then. I'm going to stay here and sulk until I feel better."

Mi Nyu rolled her eyes but gave an agreeable nod, and then she marched out of the room, intending to find Tae Kyung and apologize.

Except, after she had left the safety of the room she now shared with her brother, her courage left her in one great rush.

She had forgotten that Mi Nam had that effect on her. There was something about being near her brother where she soaked in his energy: his charisma, his self-confidence, and his self-righteous stubbornness. But the moment he was out of sight, the moment he was gone, Mi Nyu was left feeling small and helpless.

"Ridiculous," Mi Nyu muttered to herself. "Stop being silly."

No matter how much she scolded herself, though, that sense of determination which had initially driven her out of the room never returned to her.

"Apologizing is still the right thing to do," she reminded herself. "No matter how scary it seems, it's the right thing to do!"

Would apologizing be enough, though? From what she knew of Tae Kyung, the man sounded very... _sensitive_. Temperamental? Moody? No, sensitive was correct.

So if she was going to apologize, she would have to do it right.

* * *

_Cute_, Jeremy thought as he watched Mi Nyu boil water and make porridge in the kitchen. Go Mi Nam's sister was _cute_.

Jeremy didn't meet _cute _very often. Not in the entertainment industry. Actresses, singers, performers – the women he met while working day-to-day were funny, intelligent, and independent, and he thought they were all great. But there was something about Mi Nyu ... she had an innocence, a nativity which most of the women he met simply didn't possess.

Which was perfectly understandable! The music business could be pretty cut-throat! Jeremy considered himself lucky. He had Shin Woo and Tae Kyung. They worked well together and looked out for each other. They were a team. And they had a good manager who did everything in his power to promote them, and they were signed to a label which actually _cared_ about them. Cared about them as people and not as income. President Ahn had personally welcomed them to the company and had begun spending time with A. long, long before they'd made their big break and gotten famous. But most entertainers in the industry didn't receive that sort of welcome or respect, Jeremy knew, and most people could trust no one and had to work themselves to the bone in order to receive any sort of recognition for the work.

So yeah, Jeremy liked and respected most of the women he'd met over the last few years.

But Go Mi Nyu was something else. She didn't know who he was. She didn't know who A.N. Jell was. She wasn't there to fawn over him, or critique his work _as a fellow artist_, or use him as a means to making new connections in the entertainment industry. She was just... being herself.

_No,_ Jeremy reminded himself. Because yeah, Mi Nyu was unlike anyone Jeremy had met in recent memory, and she was beautiful (even in her brother's sweats and without any makeup and with dark circles under her eyes), and friendly, and sweet, and _clearly_ a fantastic cook. But regardless of all that, Jeremy couldn't, _could_ _not_, ask her out.

Not after the way Mi Nam had reacted to Mi Nyu's and Tae Kyung's _accidental_ kiss.

It still made Jeremy cringe. By the time Mi Nam had processed what had happened, both Mi Nyu and Tae Kyung were unconscious, and neither of them had had to listen to the yelling.

Good Lord, _the yelling. _Tae Kyung had made Mi Nam demonstrate his vocal abilities before allowing the man to join A.N. Jell, but that two minute jam session hadn't done anything to show just what exactly that guy's lungs were capable of.

And during the party, when Mi Nam had been dancing with Jeremy and Shin Woo, the two had noticed how often Mi Nam's eyes had traveled to his sister, but they thought he was just checking up on her to make sure she was comfortable and having fun. They hadn't realized that it was an indication of just how protective he was of his sister.

"Would you like a bowl, Jeremy?" Mi Nyu asked with a kind smile as she neatly arranged her meal on a platter.

"Of course!" Jeremy answered with enthusiasm. Because even if he couldn't ask her on a date, he could take advantage of her cooking.

After making him a dish, Mi Nyeo told Jeremy to, "Eat well!" before she carried her carefully arranged platter from the kitchen and upstairs towards the private rooms.

And really, Jeremy should have known better than to try a bite of the woman's cooking. Because if he hadn't wanted to ask her out on a date before, he certainly did now.

* * *

Tae Kyung was not impressed. Not with Go Mi Nam, or with the guy's sister.

Nuisances, both of them.

Go Mi Nam may have had a great singing voice, but he had a bad attitude. Mi Nam had spent the entire morning and afternoon making fun of Tae Kyung, claiming that he had _fainted_. Fainted from a _kiss_, of all things! As if he'd never been kissed before, as if he'd never been near a girl, as if Mi Nam's sister was really _that great-_

And that sister of his? Go Mi Nyu? Who did she think she was? He'd almost fallen for her little act the night before! She claimed to not know anything about A.N. Jell, but when she was invited to an exclusive party with the band members, she came dressed to the nines, acted coy, and spent the evening drinking on their dime! And then it was only a waiting game, wasn't it? Waiting for the right moment, the right opportunity to take the dive and go for a kiss –

Except, she was drunk. She was drunk, so she _actually _lost her balance, and instead of simply going in for a kiss, she ended up cutting his lip and drawing blood.

Although... Tae Kyung _did_ remember her brother mentioning that she had never really had alcohol before, and both President Ahn and Manager Ma had been generously pouring her drinks, and he'd seen her grimace at the taste a time or two, even though it was only champagne –

And that was no excuse! There was _no_ _excuse_ in the world for making him bleed!

And that _kiss_! Who knew where that woman's mouth had been?!

Even a shower hadn't helped!

Well, the shower _had_ helped. Between the evening out, shared germs, and sleeping _on the living room floor_, Tae Kyung had felt disgusting when he'd woken up that morning. After the shower, he'd felt better, but only until the pain in his lips and chin had flared up again.

It was after his shower, and he was dried off and dressed. Tae Kyung sat at his desk inspecting his lip when Go Mi Nyu just _walked into his room without so much as knocking._

"You," Tae Kyung snarled. "What are _you_ doing here?"

The woman hesitated, her steps faltering and her shoulders hunching. "I, um... I just wanted to apologize. I brought you some tea and porridge for lunch."

"Apologize? It sounds more like you're bribing me."

"What?! No! No, I just... I felt horrible when I woke up today, but food helped. I thought... I thought that it might help you feel better, too. And I wanted to tell you that I'm really, really sorry about what happened last night. And I'm sorry about my brother today. I just... I don't know what's gotten into him. He usually gets along with people, but..."

Was he hearing this? Was this for real?

"So not only did you attack me last night," Tae Kyung said slowly, "But then after harassing me for the entire day, your brother sent _you_ to fight his battles for him?"

Mi Nyu looked horrified. "No! I just... He shouldn't act like that, and I'm sorry. I just... I just wanted to apologize."

"Apology not accepted," Tae Kyung snapped. "You think empty words and – and what is that?"

"Porridge," Mi Nyu said quietly. "It's prawn porridge."

"Are you... Are you _serious_? No, empty words and _prawn porridge_ will _not_ magically heal my lip! I'm allergic to shell fish! That could kill me!"

At this proclamation, the woman started up her obnoxious stuttering again. "Oh! I'll just – I'm so sorry! I didn't know! I'll just take it back-"

Except, in her haste to remove the offending food from Tae Kyung's presence, she stumbled over her own feet. Ultimately, the edge of the tray caught the side of the door and the tray, it's contents, the china and the porridge and the prawns, all fell to the floor. China shattered, prawn porridge splattered over the floor and against the walls –

And the tea water. The tea water which had been hot to the point of boiling only a few moments before splashed towards the woman's bare feet.

Tae Kyung moved on instinct, trying to catch the woman before she could step in the almost boiling hot water or drop to the floor and cut herself on any of the broken glass. Except, she had already moved backwards and out of the way, so Tae Kyung caught nothing more than open air, and then he was falling onto the glass, and _how on earth_ did the porridge get in his mouth, and then he couldn't breath.

Even as Mi Nyu began calling for help, Tae Kyung knew that somehow, _somehow_, people were going to make this out as being his fault.


	4. Chapter 4

"Well, this is exciting," Shin Woo quietly murmured.

Mi Nam huffed in agreement. They sat in a hospital waiting area with Jeremy, Manager Hoon, and Coordinator Wang. Mi Nam wasn't sure why exactly Coordinator Wang was there, except that she seemed to _always_ be around.

The injuries looked worse than they actually were, the doctors told them. Tae Kyung would have to take steroids for the next few days to combat his allergic reaction. The cuts on his hands and legs needed bandaging, but he wouldn't need any stitches. Mi Nyu had been splashed by a bit of hot water, and her worst wound was a second degree burn the size of Mi Nam's thumbnail.

Mi Nyu had insisted she stay with Tae Kyung while he was being treated, though. She felt like she had to take responsibility for causing the guy's injuries.

"It wasn't her fault," Mi Nam declared. "Mi Nyu's clumsy, sure, but only when she's nervous or scared. She probably dropped the tray because Tae Kyung was bullying her."

"Probably," Shin Woo agreed. "Tae Kyung is stubborn and very protective of his personal space."

"He can get pretty angry sometimes," Jeremy supplied. "When we first started living together, it seemed like he was angry all the time."

"Things will settle down," Shin Woo told him. "Tae Kyung just needs some time to get used to you and your sister."

With a long sigh, Mi Nam announced, "I don't know if there will _be_ time."

"What do you mean?" Coordinator Wang asked.

Mi Nam's eyes slid to the doors of the treatment area in order to make sure his sister wasn't on her way towards them before explaining, "My sister wants to go to Rome and become a nun."

"Wow, really?" Manager Hoon asked.

Mi Nam nodded. "She was supposed to leave a couple of days ago, but she missed her flight. She was only supposed to stay with me for the night while she waited for the next flight out, but I convinced her to stay with me for a few weeks. I'm hoping to convince her to stay _permanently_, but the way things are going..."

"Why don't you want her to become a nun?" Jeremy asked.

"I just... don't think it's the right thing for her. She's great, and one of the kindest, most generous people I've ever met, but... I think she's going to Rome because she thinks it's what she's supposed to do, not because it's what she _wants_ to do. She doesn't know that there's anything else that she _could_ do. Mi Nyu thinks that becoming a nun will open all sorts of doors for her and lead her to her life's work. But I think that becoming a nun would close more doors than it would open, and she just... doesn't understand that. I don't want her to miss out on living her life. I wanted to show her what that life could be, but... It isn't working out."

"Of course it isn't," Shin Woo told him. For a moment, Mi Nam felt anger rising in him, but then he remembered that this was Shin Woo, not Tae Kyung, and Shin Woo probably didn't mean to be cruel. Sure enough, Shin Woo continued, saying, "It sounds like she's had a pretty sheltered life. She's gone from living in a nunnery to living with a bunch of rock stars. This has to be unlike anything she's ever done in her life, and it sounds like our lifestyle isn't something that she's ever allowed herself to want."

"Sounds to me like you just miss having your sister around," Jeremy put in.

Mi Nam chuckled. "Well, yeah. I've really missed her over the last few years. I didn't even realize just how much I missed her until I saw her again... And especially if she's going to go through with becoming a nun, well then... I want to keep her around for as long as possible before that time comes."

Manager Hoon eagerly clapped his hands together. "Then we need to do everything we can to make Mi Nyu feel welcome here! If she's happy here, then she won't leave!"

"To make that happen, we'll have to convince Tae Kyung to help out, and I think we all know how he feels about Go Mi Nyu right now," Shin Woo put in.

"Tae Kyung doesn't like _anybody_ when he firsts meets them," Jeremy said with a shake of his head. "Remember how mean he was to us in the beginning? It's not a matter of _convincing_ him; he's so stubborn, telling him he should like Go Mi Nyu will just make him worse. He'll get his head out of his ass in his own time. We just have to wait him out."

"True," Shin Woo hummed. "And in the meantime we can give Mi Nyu the support she needs so that she feels comfortable here."

"Not just comfortable," Mi Nam put in. "She needs to feel_ useful_, too. That's why she likes the idea of becoming a nun so much. She thinks it will lead her to do the most good."

Around him, the band rallied.

"We'll do our best!" Jeremy and Manager Hoon cried. Shin Woo gave a nod, and Coordinator Wang gave him a wink.

Mi Nam couldn't believe he was going along with this harebrained scheme. If his sister wanted to be a nun, she would, because she could have a stiff backbone when it came to something she _really_ wanted. She could be as bad as Tae Kyung when she put some effort into it. She may leave for Rome even after she felt that these dorms were her home.

However, it was an idea. It was the only idea they had, so it _had_ to work. And with almost everyone helping him out, then maybe there was an actual chance that it _could_ work.

* * *

"I'm so sorry," Mi Nyu said for what had to be the 30th time.

"Shut up," Tae Kyung grumbled as the doctor finished with the last of the bandages.

He was so angry he wanted to scream. He was mostly angry at himself, though, because he had been the idiot who jumped for a girl who was hardly even in danger of being injured. His irritation hadn't been helped by Mi Nyeo's insistence of hovering over him for every moment that he was being treated. The girl even made the doctor show her how to properly clean and bandage the wounds so that she could help change his bandages at home, because even though the injuries hadn't needed stitches, it would be a few days before the bandages could come off.

As if he even _needed_ help. He'd been looking after himself for years. He didn't need anyone to coddle him or fuss over him.

"And these are the pills he needs to take for the next few days?" Mi Nyu asked one of the nurses.

As if he couldn't remember to take the medication on his own. He _could_. When he was younger, he hadn't always remembered to ask what ingredients were used in the dishes he ordered at restaurants, and his allergic reaction today was _nothing _compared to some of the reactions he'd had when he was younger. He'd really only come to the hospital to make sure he didn't need stitches for his cuts.

But Mi Nyeo promised, "I'll make sure he remembers to take them!"

When Tae Kyung was finally given the all clear to go home, he muttered, "Don't bother," as he and Mi Nyu made their way to the waiting room.

"Don't bother what?" Mi Nyu absently asked as she studied the signs they passed to make sure they were going the right way.

"Don't bother helping with my medicine or bandages. I can do it myself. And honestly, if I let you near my injuries, I probably _would_ need stitches, by the time you were done."

The girl pouted. "I didn't mean to," she said quietly. "I don't... What can I do to make it up to you? Really, if there's anything in my power that I can do to make you forgive me, I'll do my best..."

It was like a switch flipped in his brain. A smirk spread across his lips as his plan took form and solidified into a workable idea in a matter of seconds.

Quickly, he schooled his expression and asked, "Do you mean that?"

"Of course! If there's anything I can do, I'll do it!"

"Well... I _do_ need an assistant. Someone to run errands for me, organize my schedule, help me prepare for events, that sort of thing. I mean, with your brother just joining the band, we're doing a press tour, preforming concerts, doing radio programs, going on TV... Plus I'm working on writing A.N. Jell's next album, reworking all of our old songs so that your brother and his piano have parts in the songs... This has been A.N. Jell's busiest year to date."

The girl stuttered for a moment. "You want me... you want me to be your assistant? But... I've never... How am I supposed to be an assistant?"

Tae Kyung's lips twitched, but he managed to keep his grin safely hidden behind an expression of contemplation, as if he really had to think this whole thing through. "It's simple. You just complete the chores I give you. Unless you can't even manage to fetch coffee or pick up my dry cleaning-"

"No!" Mi Nyeo cried, momentarily drawing the attention of some nurses gathered around a near-by nurses station. More quietly, she said, "No, I can do that! That doesn't sound difficult at all! And if it will make you forgive me, then I'll be the best assistant I can be!"

_Famous last words_, Tae Kyung thought with gleeful excitement.

* * *

When Go Mi Nyu and Tae Kyung entered the waiting area, Shin Woo felt dread twist in his stomach. Mi Nyu seemed cheerful and upbeat, but the grin on Tae Kyung's face was absolutely _devious_.

He hadn't actually had a chance to talk with Mi Nyu and get to know her yet, but she seemed like a sweet girl, and honestly, things had really livened up in the day since she and her brother had moved in. Therefore, he gave a sympathetic cringe when he saw Tae Kyung's smile, even though he didn't _really_ know what that smile entailed.

"You're okay!" Manager Hoon cried when he saw the pair approach. "What are those bandages on your arms? And your hands! Will you be able to play instruments?"

Tae Kyung rolled his eyes. "They're just a little scratched up. My hands will be fine in a couple of days."

"Mi Nyu?" her brother asked.

"Oh, I was just splashed with a little water. I'm fine. Didn't need anything more than a glance over. Tae Kyung got the worst of it. I'm really sorry for dropping that bowl and breaking it."

"It wasn't your fault," Mi Nam hurried to assure her.

"But it was!" she argued. "If I hadn't been so clumsy-"

Mi Nam opened his mouth to argue, to assure her that it had only been an accident and she wasn't responsible.

But before he could say anything, Ni Nyu plowed on. "And since I'm responsible, then I'm going to make it up to Tae Kyung by working as his assistant until he's forgiven me!"

_Oh no_, Shin Woo thought, once again taking in the delighted grin stretching across Tae Kyung's lips. _He's going to eat her alive. She won't stay, then. She'll run screaming._


	5. Chapter 5

"I can't believe you just _agreed_ with that guy's idea!" Mi Nam groaned.

"Of course I did!" Mi Nyu scoffed. "I owe it to him. He _really_ could have gotten hurt, way worse than he was. An allergy like that can _kill_ people."

Mi Nam's mouth worked as he tried to come up with an argument. Because this was one of the problems of arguing with his sister. She was so freaking _good_. How is he supposed to combat that statement? _Of course allergies can kill people, but so what if it's Tae Kyung? _

Mi Nyu would get _so_ angry with him if he made any such suggestion. Plus, he didn't actually want the guy to die or anything like that. But he knew that if he even _tried_ to argue right now, anything he said would sound like something to that affect.

"Plus I'm making his schedule a little easier on him. Getting him coffee and running errands for him, things like that. I'm just helping him stay organized."

Mi Nyu was wearing a flattering peach colored top and an elegant blue pencil skirt, something attractive yet professional, perfectly in style with what professionals in the music industry would wear. It was one of the flattering sets she'd picked up when they went shopping together. It wasn't nearly flashy enough for an evening at a club, but it was perfect for an assistant.

She was _serious_ about this. She was putting in _real effort_. For that jerk!

"Look, just be careful and... And if you need anything, _anything_, just call. Call me, or Shin Woo, or Jeremy. We're all here to help, okay?"

"Sure, Oopa. Don't worry about me, though. I can handle myself!"

Mi Nam prayed that her words were true.

* * *

Mi Nyu collapsed into bed with a deep sigh.

She was pretty sure that this had been the worst day she had ever had. It had started before they'd even left the dorms.

Tae Kyung wanted to drink a coffee while he was getting ready for the day. So Go Nyeo had made some. But she hadn't put enough sugar in it. The second cup she made had _too much_ sugar in it, and the third cup she made had the perfect amount of sugar, but it was too cool. By then, the pot she'd made was empty, so she had to brew a _second_ pot of coffee, but by then Tae Kyung was ready for the day and it was time for them to head into the office, so they'd ended up getting coffee from a cafe' drive through on their way to the agency.

The rest of the day had progressed in a very similar manner. It seemed like no matter how hard she tried, she always did something wrong. She messed up even the simplest of tasks, and she had to attempt any one thing three times before it was deemed perfect.

The only thing she hadn't messed up was picking up Tae Kyung's dry cleaning. Although apparently, when she'd gone to hang up the three designer suits in his dressing room, she had messed up his closet and everything was out of order now (it had only been three suits! They weren't that hard to move around!). And after Tae Kyung explained the complex organizational system that he used for both his costume closet at work and his personal closet at home, she wondered if he was just messing with her, because no one could be _that _concerned about which color shirts can hang next to each other and organizing pants by texture.

But then, when he wasn't yelling at her about how she was messing everything up, she saw him while he was working. And she kind of understood.

Tae Kyung was a perfectionist. He demanded perfection of himself and everyone around him.

_No wonder he's so angry all the time_, Mi Nyu thought. _No one's perfect, not even him. It must be frustrating..._

But his music... it was beautiful. His demands for perfection resulted in great work, and Mi Nyu understood why Tae Kyung would want to be a singer and a performer, if he could come up with such wonderful songs.

After seeing him working so hard, Mi Nyu decided that she would do everything she could to make sure that he could focus on his work without having to worry about all those little imperfections and messes throughout the day.

However, that goal seemed a little unreasonable. Because mistakes happened. Nothing could be perfect _all_ the time.

"I'll try harder," Mi Nyu quietly promised herself. "Maybe I can't be perfect, but I can try my best. Hopefully I'll think of some other way to help him soon."

Decision made, Go Mi Nyu stood and began to change out of her work clothes and into some pajamas. Tomorrow would be better, she decided.

* * *

Tae Kyung hadn't felt so relaxed in... years. Not after he'd become a part of A.N. Jell, and his life became hectic.

He should have gotten a personal assistant _ages_ ago. He didn't know why this didn't occur to him back when A.N. Jell first started becoming popular and busy. Go Mi Nyu was taking care of all the busy work that usually got in the way of him doing his _real_ work. Bringing him his meals, fielding his calls, keeping track of his schedule, doing his grocery shopping, dealing with Manager Ma, passing messages back and forth between him and President Ahn, sorting his mail (into groups: music related business, all other business, personal, fan mail, fanatic fan mail, and might possibly need restraining orders fan mail), and then she also gave him someone to vent his energies on when he became stuck or frustrated with his work.

For the past three days, going into work hadn't felt like _work_. It had actually been kind of _fun_.

So when Presedent Ahn announced that they would spend the next two weeks getting Mi Nam ready for the stage and going on a marketing campaign before their first concert together, Tae Kyung found himself gleefully making a list of everything that would need to be done during the next couple of weeks. After all, the band was going to be _so_ busy, and Tae Kyung would need all the help he could get in the form of Go Mi Nyu acting as his assistant.

Except that latter, when he was wandering by one of the break rooms, he heard Go Mi Nam and Shin Woo speaking inside.

"-wants to meet up. And if she really is my aunt, then she'll probably be able to tell me something about my mother."

"That's good, isn't it?" Shin Woo asked slowly. "I mean... that's half the reason you want to be famous, right? So that your mother will be able to find you..."

"Yeah, but... I kind of... Used the excuse of finding our mother to keep Mi Nyu from going to Rome. I didn't expect it to happen so soon... And if this is for real, then... Mi Nyu could leave any day. It's like... as soon as I find my mother, then I'll loose my sister. There's actually a part of me that wants to throw this letter away and ignore it because I want Mi Nyu to stay with me for a little while longer. But at the same time, I've wanted to meet my mother for almost as long as I can remember. And it's the same way for Mi Nyu. It wouldn't be fair to keep something like this from her..."

Shin Woo sighed. "Maybe...maybe you can meet with this woman first... See if she's really your relative and can really tell you anything about your mother. And in the meantime, we can work harder to make your sister feel at home here, so that she'll feel less inclined to leave..."

Ni Nam gave a heavy sigh. "That won't happen as long as she's spending all of her time working for Tae Kyung. Did you seen how tired she was this morning? I think she spent half the night polishing his shoes."

Shin Woo shook his head and made a noise that sounded a lot like _agreement_ and _disappointment_. But before he could say anything more, Coordinator Wang wandered into the break room and informed the two men that she wanted to talk to them about what they would wear for their upcoming photo shoot, and Tae Kyung hurried away before anyone could spot him.

Go Mi Nyu was... leaving? She _wanted_ to leave? What woman _didn't_ want to live with a bunch of young, attractive music stars? Who didn't want to work in the music industry?

And _oh, no_, he'd have to hire a _real_ personal assistant, and he'd have to train them (and he'd just spent _three days_ explaining to Go Mi Nyu how he liked things done, and she _still_ didn't have everything figured out), and he'd have to actually _pay_ them (which wouldn't actually be that bad. It wasn't like he didn't have the money), and he doubted that he'd be able to find someone who actually put up with him making them redo things three or four times before declaring it satisfactory-

And what did she want to go to Rome for, anyways?

But Mi Nyu was trying to get her to stay, and Shin Woo was trying to help. She would want to leave for Rome after learning about where her mother was, but she might not leave if she liked living here.

Well, that shouldn't be too hard. They were wealthy rock stars. They could make her comfortable.

Except he hated the woman.

But she was a good assistant.

And, damn, he had been _so_ mean to her for the past few days. She may have been a menace, but she wasn't unkind or rude, not even when he was unkind and rude to her. Maybe she wasn't as bad as he'd initially thought.

She was still more trouble than she was worth!

He really was busy, though, and he'd only have _more_ work to do during the next few days, heck, the next few weeks! He wouldn't have time to train a new assistant. Go Mi Nyu had really improved over the last few days! She'd even made his coffee correctly on the first try that morning! He could give her a couple more days to really settle into the job and become comfortable living and working with A.N. Jell.

Plus, if she left, Go Mi Nam would probably be a pain to work with.

And besides, he hadn't forgiven her debt!

_That's right_, he thought, _I haven't forgiven her yet. She needs to work as my personal assistant until I've forgiven her. And maybe if I can get her to like working as my personal assistant, she'll want to stay after she's found her mother and after I've forgiven her for her debt. Because training someone new would be a pain._

Tae Kyung took a piece of paper from his pocket, opened it, and looked at the long, long list of spiteful, unnecessary errands he'd written out for Go Mi Nyeo to complete over the next few days. Abruptly, he ripped the list up and went to his office to make a new one.

* * *

A.N. Jell, President Ahn, Manager Ma, and Go Mi Nyu went to a nice restaurant for diner that evening. They wanted a dinner together before the chaos of preparing for a show started the next day, but they didn't want to throw a party like they had after announcing Mi Nam's introduction to A.N. Jell. The restaurant they went to was popular, but the tables and booths were comfortably private. No one bothered them after they found a table, and they were able to have a quite, relaxing meal out together.

Go Mi Nyu sat in between her brother and Jeremy and across from Tae Kyung, content to listen to the men trade jokes and talk about what they had done that day.

"Will you come to the photo shoot tomorrow?" Jeremy asked Go Mi Nyu after the topic had turned to the hectic schedule the band would have over the next couple of weeks.

In reply, she shrugged. "It depends on what kind of errands Tae Kyung needs help with."

"Aww, come on, Mi Nyu," her brother wheedled. "It will be my first real shoot with the band. It's going to be at a pool, and it will probably be really fun. Come on."

"I'll try," she said with a sigh. Because honestly, she doubted she would have the time.

Tae Kyung made lists. It was his third favorite thing to do, behind writing music and scowling at people. Mi Nyu was given two lists every night, one which was comprised of the tasks he needed done _every day, _such as the retrieval of his morning coffee, a review of his day's schedule, and reminders of everything he was allergic to so that she wouldn't "accidentally almost kill him" every time she made him a meal. But the daily list seemed to have more and more items on them every day, from taking the laundry out of his room to the way he liked his robe and slippers set next to his desk for him to wear around his room before bed. And that didn't include the contents of the _second_ list, which contained errands she needed to run which were related to whatever was on Tae Kyung's schedule for the day. Which meant that there may only be a few simple tasks for her to complete (on the days when he wasn't doing anything more than writing music in the studio) or she may spend the day driving from one side of the city to the other in order to keep him fed and comfortable and happy during various interviews and meetings.

Mi Nyu phone chimed, signaling that she had a text. Glancing from side to side to make sure that her brother and Jeremy were both wrapped up in other conversations (because she didn't want to seem rude), she quickly swiped the screen to read the message she had received.

It was as if Tae Kyung could read her mind. His text read, _Join me for a drink on the patio. We'll discus tomorrow's schedule._

That ill-timed, rude, inconsiderate – he wanted to hand her the lists _during dinner_? Tae Kyung could be such a - a -

Taking a deep breath, she quietly stood from the table and went to the bar to order a chute of champaign (because that's what Tae Kyung was drinking this evening) and a glass of ginger ale for herself. When she carried the drinks outside to the patio, she found Tae Kyung sitting in the restaurant's back garden, at a small table with a pair of chairs situated on either side, with tall shrubs and vines surrounding the table and chairs, giving the area the illusion of privacy.

Handing Tae Kyung his drink, she looked at the single list which had been set on the table in front of the unoccupied chair.

"Where's... where's the rest of the list? Where's the _other_ list?" she asked, staring at the four items on the single list sitting in front of her.

"That's what I wanted to talk about," Tae Kyung absently explained after taking a sip of champaign. "Jeremy and Shin Woo decided to hire a maid for the dorms, so you won't need to worry about my dry cleaning or any household related chores anymore. And the list isn't as long because... your training is over."

"My... training?"

"Of course. You've been working on so many things and I've been keeping such a close eye on you because you've been training. But now... Now you know how to do all of the tasks I may need your help with, so you don't have to practice them anymore. Like, like sorting mail. Manager Ma and some of the guys in security usually take care of my letters, but sometimes they don't have time to properly do it themselves, so you might need to help with that. But now I know that you _can_ sort the mail properly, so the job will go back to them and... and you won't have to worry about it again until they can't do it. And you don't actually have to cook every meal for me every day, just... Every now and again, if I'm busy in the studio or can't make it to a restaurant in between appointments. And now I know that you're familiar with all my allergies, so I don't have to drill you on that kind of stuff anymore. So you see, your... your training is over."

"Oh, thank God," Go Mi Nyu sighed in relief. "I – I mean, I actually believed that I would have to do _all_ of those things _every single day_. I didn't realize..."

Tae Kyung's eyebrow rose. "You've never been through job training before?"

"Well, I've never had a job. I mean, I was given chores and errands to run while I was at the Abbey, of course, but... I didn't exactly need training for those things. Not like I needed to train for a job as a personal assistant! So... Working for you might not be so bad after all!"

For a moment, Tae Kyung's eyes narrowed.

"I mean, working for you wouldn't... I just meant that there were_ so many things_ to do, and it had nothing to... Working for you would be fine, better than fine, it would be great-"

"Okay, I get it," Tae Kyung snapped with a roll of his eyes. "Just go back to dinner."

"Aren't... aren't you coming?"

"No, I need to make a call to Coordinator Wang about the photo shoot tomorrow," he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I'll be back in when I finish my drink."

"Oh, okay. If you're sure," she sighed. "I'll... I'll see you inside. Thank you for explaining everything to me."

Giving a quick, awkward bow, Mi Nyu hurried to take her drink and return back inside. Tae Kyung worried that she was onto him, that she had noticed him grasping for an excuse to stay outside and recover from the pathetic apologetic explanation Mi Nyu had just given him.

That had been... mildly humiliating, hearing her go on and on about how horrible she thought he was but not being mean enough to say so up front, but also too honest to _lie_ about it. Jeez, had he really been _that_ mean?

However, Tae Kyung actually _did_ have a call to make to Coordinator Wang about the photo shoot. He'd heard that they were supposed to wear jeans while underwater, and _nothing_ was more uncomfortable than wet jeans. He was hoping that Coordinator Wang would be able to come up with a suitable alternative that the directors and Presedent Ahn would like.

The call only took a few moments, and Coordinator Wang promised to talk to President Ahn and the photographers.

He felt better after the call, but before he could stand and head back inside, he heard the doors of the restaurant scrape against the concrete walkway as it was roughly opened, and then he heard a voice – a woman talking on the phone, or _whining_, to be specific.

"But I don't want to be in any more of his movies," she was saying, a clear pout in her voice. "Everything of his seems the same. Can't we just _try_ someone else, someone more creative? Someone _new_?" she listened to the response from the other end, and then her attitude changed in the blink of an eye. Suddenly cheery, she said, "Yeah, I've heard really good things about her work! Thanks, Oppa, you're a lifesaver!"

Apparently having gotten her way, the woman ended the call. But instead of going back inside, the woman began to pace across the patio, muttering angrily to herself.

"I don't care how long he's been directing movies! He's washed up!" she was saying to herself. "And he's dragging me down with him! Why those idiots even keep him around..."

For a brief moment, the woman wandered into Tae Kyung's line of sight, and he recognized the woman. Yoo He Yi, the National Fairy and one of the most famous actresses in Korea. Her picture often frequented the same magazines as A.N. Jell. She was _supposed_ to be one of the nicest people you'd ever meet. She didn't sound very nice just then, however.

Tae Kyung knew _exactly _who she was muttering about. Lee Ji Hu was one of the greatest script writers and movie directors in the country. He had been writing and directing box office hits for _thirty years_, and for the last few years he'd been casting Yoo He Yi as a main character in all of his movies. That man was _responsible_ for her success, and she was being extremely disrespectful to him. And then to sound so _cheerful_ while essentially telling her manager that she won't work for him anymore... if it became well known that Yoo He Yi refused to work with him, his career would be over...

The girl was mumbling about the restaurant, now, and she was tired, she wanted to go home, this was stupid, this whole _day_ had been stupid, it was unfair that they were expecting her to go through with this, how could they honestly expect her to go to hospitals and spend time with the sick-

Tae Kyung became more and more unimpressed with every nasty word he heard.

Finally having heard enough, he waited until she paced away from the table he sat at and she was no longer in between him and the door to the restaurant. Then, he made a break for it.

She didn't notice him on the patio until he opened the door and the bottom scraped along the concrete.

"I – Wait! How long-"

"Don't worry, Fairy. I won't tell anyone how fake you are," he called over his shoulder.

"No, I didn't – I mean-"

"Don't bother," he said, rolling his eyes. "Honestly, I don't care how you act. Bye, Fake Fairy."

It was easy to walk back inside and rejoin his table.

"Where's Go Mi Nam?" he asked as he sat down at the table, across from Go Mi Nyu.

"He spilled some sauce on his jacket," Shin Woo explained. "He took it to the restroom to clean it."

"Would you like some food for your plate, Tae Kyung?"Mi Nyu asked him. "There are a couple of dishes you can't have because of your allergies."

Mi Nyu was pointing out which dishes were safe for him to consume when Go Mi Nam returned to the table.

"Hey, everybody! Look who else is eating here tonight! It's Yoo He Yi! She's agreed to join us for our meal!"

As Go Mi Nam pulled out a chair for Yoo He Yi at his side, Yoo He Yi was making polite introductions with everyone at the table, giving a slight bow and nodding with a friendly smile at every new person she met.

When she came to Tae Kyung, her smile stayed the same, but her eyes became angry and sharp.

Tae Kyung had to hold back a long sigh.

* * *

Go Mi Nyu was humming.

Shin Woo had _never_ heard her humming before. He'd never seen her this happy. She had been nothing but nerves that first night they met, and the next day she was hungover and unwell. And since then, she'd been at Tae Kyung's beck and call, and he had her working from dawn to dusk.

This was new. This was... nice.

"Why are you in such a good mood?" Shin Woo asked as he watched her wash and dry the dishes that were piled in the sink (because the maid Tae Kyung had suggested they get wouldn't actually start working until next week).

"Tae Kyung gave me the list for tomorrow!"

"And that's... good?" Shin Woo asked, because for the last few nights, she'd been pulling her hair at some of the seemingly impossible demands that Tae Kyung put on her.

"Yeah! My training is over, so I don't need to do most of the stuff that were on those lists, since I know how to properly do them now. I don't actually have that much to do tomorrow! I'll even have time to come to the photo shoot!"

"Wow, that was... really nice of him," Shin Woo said suspiciously. Because three hours ago, when they were still at the agency, there had been _no_ indication that Tae Kyung was going to let up from his torment of Go Mi Nyu. Although, when he thought about dinner, he realized that Tae Kyung hadn't made rude, seething comments at Go Mi Nyu every time she'd opened her mouth to speak, and he hadn't teased her about her clumsiness or told her that she was a menace. He'd treated her like he didn't loath her very existence.

Tae Kyung _never _warmed up to people that quickly.

Although as Go Mi Nyu went back to her humming he decided... what did it really matter? Go Mi Nyu sounded happy, and her brother would be pleased, for sure.

For a few moments more, Shin Woo tried to remind himself that he didn't care about Go Mi Nyu's smile because he cared about Go Mi Nyu. No, he only cared for her smile because he was trying to become friends with his new band mate, her brother, and if that meant showing support of Mi Nam's plans to make his sister want to stay with him, then Shin Woo would help him where needed.

Shin Woo didn't like avoiding his feelings, though, so that lie only worked for a matter of minutes. Then, he thought, _Who am I kidding? That smile is amazing._

With a sigh of resignation, Shin Woo grabbed a hand towel and joined Mi Nyu at the sink, taking the dishes as she finished washing them and doing the drying for her.

They didn't talk, but Mi Nyu hummed and tapped her feet, and Shin Woo stole glances of her from the corner of his eye, his smile widening every time he saw her's.

* * *

The photo shoot took _forever_.

Mi Nam had distracted the crew while they were trying to do their jobs, asking people what they were doing, what was all that equipment for, how long had they been working for the agency, did they like their jobs – by the end of the shoot, he was on a first name basis with everyone on the crew.

Go Mi Nam also kept getting into splashing fights with the guys in the water. He'd even gotten Tae Kyung involved (although they both proved to be competitive, and a splash war had soon turned into a dunking war. They were lucky no one had been seriously injured. They were even more lucky that none of the crew picked up on the angry undertone of the whole thing. The two had worn themselves out, though, and the rest of the shoot had been quick and quiet).

And Go Mi Nyu had been there, guarding the coffees she had brought for the four of them to drink after they got out of the water, sitting with Manager Ma and Coordinator Wang, smiling as she watched A.N. Jell's antics.

It was one of the best afternoons of Jeremy's life. The entire thing had been light-hearted with high energy, and there had been a lot of laughing. It was a nice change from the photo shoots where the photographer moved around more than any of the models and no one really spoke to each other.

As soon as they were out of the water, Go Mi Nyu and Manager Ma were there with towels and coffee for them.

"You were great!" Mi Nyu told them. "I bet the pictures are going to look amazing!" She looked like she wanted to hug her brother, but she settled for helping him wrap his towel around his shoulders.

"Thanks for the coffee," Shin Woo told her with a fond grin.

Jeremy had to smile, too, because the shoot had taken a while, and she'd had to replace the coffee twice in the time it took for them to get out of the water.

"Was the water cold? It looked cold," she was excitedly babbling as she fussed over her brother.

"The water is heated," Tae Kyung said with a roll of his eyes, as if that fact should have been self explanatory.

"It wouldn't have been very much fun to stay in the water for much longer, but it wasn't uncomfortable," Jeremy brightly explained, trying to take some of the sting out of Tae Kyung's snappy statement. "Do you like to swim, Mi Nyu?"

It was the wrong question to ask, because now Jeremy was picturing Mi Nyu in a brightly colored swimsuit, laughing and splashing in water and _whoa_.

"I know how to swim, but I'm not very good at it," Mi Nyu was saying, and Jeremy shook his head to clear his thoughts, making Mi Nam and Tae Kyung groan when he showered them with water from his hair.

"After the press tour, when things are a little calmer, we should take a few days to go to the beach," Shin Woo suggested.

And now Jeremy was picturing Mi Nyu laughing as she splashed in the waves, droplets of water flying up around her as she dove into the water and came up laughing, her bikini a bright yellow and green, the yellow as bright as her smile and -

And Mi Nam was laughing at the look on his sister's face. "Don't worry, Sis," he said as he threw an arm over her shoulder. "I'm a strong swimmer. Nothing will happen to you while I'm around. I'll keep an eye on you!"

-and Go Mi Nam would _kill_ him if he knew he was thinking about his sister like that.

Jeremy ran his towel over his face to hide his grimace, then, grinning, announced that he was headed to the locker rooms to shower and get into some dry clothes.

* * *

Tae Kyung should have kept the woman's task list full to the brim. This thing where she _had_ _time to stand around and be a huge distraction to everyone_ was _not_ working out.

Tae Kyung suddenly understood why Mi Nyu had felt the need to apologize on her brother's behalf that first day. It was because she didn't know that her brother was a complete and total _ass_. Whenever his sister was within hearing or seeing range, the guy was suddenly nice, and friendly, and playful as opposed to the rude and aggressive attitude he kept when she wasn't around.

He hated that guy. He was such a – such a _fake_. Like that Yoo He Yi woman. Tae Kyung _hated_ fakes. They could be trusted to do only one thing: lie to people. Otherwise, they couldn't be trusted at all.

"I think I'm in love," Mi Nam announced, drawing Tae Kyung out of his thoughts.

Tae Kyung froze and blinked at Go Mi Nam's announcement. He waited for the clamor of excited questions which would start up from the other guys with them in the locker room, but when no clamor came, Tae Kyung glanced around and saw that they were the last two people in the space.

Go Mi Nam wasn't announcing his new love to his friends, he was announcing it to _Tae Kyung_.

_We aren't even friends_, Tae Kyung thought suspiciously. "With who?" he finally asked.

"Yoo He Yi," he said with a grin.

Tae Kyung blanched. Then, he grinned. "You two would be perfect together."

Mi Nam rolled his eyes. "I _know_ about her, you know. At the restaurant we went to last night, there was a window in the men's bathroom that was just next to the patio. I heard _everything_."

"You know how much I hate fakes, then, don't you?"

"Yeah, yeah. I wasn't being _fake_ today, you know. It was just... part of the job. I mean... if people think we're not getting along, people will start looking for drama. We could get some really bad press from something like that. So, no, I'm not going to announced how much I want to push you into oncoming traffic in front of cameras and the world. Jeez. But Yoo He Yi-"

Tae Kyung shook his head. "If you'd really heard her, you wouldn't like her that much."

"That's the thing! I _did_ hear her! And I thought she was a complete bitch! But then as I was leaving the bathroom, I ran into her while she was in the middle of storming after you, and she was so _flustered,_ and she was stomping her feet and pouting, and she was adorable! And then she noticed me, and she started doing that super happy nice thing she'd tried on you, and when I knew to look for it, I could see just how physically painful it was for her to smile at me, and _that_ was just... Kind of hilarious, actually. And then she realized who I was and that I had an in with you, and there was this _look_ in her eye. Like... she knew exactly what she wanted and how she was going to get it. Her spirit, her determination... How can I not admire that?"

Tae Kyung was speechless. He was sitting mostly dressed but with only one shoe on, his mouth hanging open, and staring wide-eyed at Go Mi Nam. "Are you... You _can't_ be serious."

"Yeah. I mean... It _has_ to be love, right? Why else would I feel like this for someone like her?"

Tae Kyung almost asked, _Well you have a dick, don't you? _But when he saw Mi Nam's expression, he realized that the guy was actually talking about _real_ _feelings_.

"Menaces," Tae Kyung finally told him. "You're both menaces."


	6. Chapter 6

"If you're going to be my assistant, you'll have to dress the part," Tae Kyung announced.

Mi Nyu replied to this statement with a blank stare. Then, looking down at her long skirt and frilly blouse, she asked, "What's wrong with my clothes? The sales woman said they were nice..."

Tae Kyung rolled his eyes. "You only have four outfits, and they all make you look like a soccer mom. Which would be fine if A.N. Jell was a dentist office or an insurance agency. But we're in the entertainment industry, and frankly, you wore that exact same outfit on Tuesday. People will notice. And they'll know that you're associated with me..." And why wasn't he shutting up? He was an inch away from saying that she _embarrassed him. _That would be crossing a line. Even Tae Kyung knew that, so he worked to swallow the words before they could pass through his lips. He was trying _not_ to be mean to her, damn it.

Luckily, at his pause, Mi Nyu spoke up. "I don't have any money, though."

"Oh, um, then I'll just... I'll take you shopping and... deduct it from your salary," Tae Kyung blurted. Because he knew that she wouldn't simply agree to allow him to buy her a few hundred dollars worth of designer clothes (Mi Nyu could be prideful about the strangest things sometimes).

"But... I'm not getting paid," she pointed out.

"Of... of course you are. You're working as my personal assistant. We did the job training, didn't we? And you worked for me yesterday."

"Of course! I know that! I just... didn't think I'd be paid for that..."

"This isn't just a job I made up," Tae Kyung snapped. Although, it kind of had been when they'd first agreed to their deal. But as of yesterday, she was now kind of a legitimate employee, right? And if it got her to agree to let him buy her some nicer, more fashionable clothes, then sure. Sure, she was getting paid. He'd get her a card or something.

"I – I know you didn't make up this job-"

"And you need to look professional, right?"

"I – yeah."

"Well then I'm taking you shopping this morning for proper clothing, because I'm sure you don't know the first thing about dressing professionally for work in the music industry, and I don't trust the stylist not to dress you like you're going to the club every day. I can't remember where I put my car keys. Find them and put on your shoes then call the manager and President Ahn and tell them that I won't be at the agency until this afternoon. I'll arrange reservations at a restaurant in the shopping district for lunch."

Nodding, Mi Nyu took off to find Tae Kyung's car keys (Tae Kyung suspected that Mi Nam had "borrowed" his car the evening before and left the keys in his and Mi Nyu's room). After she was gone, Tae Kyung moved to complete his own task.

* * *

Mi Nyu sighed when she recognized Tae Kyung's car keys on the table in her and Mi Nam's sitting room.

"Where did you even go last night?" she huffed at her brother as she grabbed the keys. Mi Nam was still in his pajamas, and he was was checking his e-mail at the desk.

"I broke into Yoo He Yi's trailer on the set of her new movie, and I filled it with flowers," he said with a yawn. "But what are _you_ doing up so early? We don't need to be at the Agency until 10:00."

"Oh, Tae Kyung's taking me shopping for some clothes. He says I don't look professional by music industry standards, and I need more than four outfits," she explained to her brother as she began writing texts to Manager Ma and President Ahn on Tae Kyung's behalf. "And he's making reservations at a restaurant for lunch."

Mi Nam's eyebrows rose. "Does that mean you two won't be at the offices this morning?"

Mi Nyu shook her head, turning to eye her brother when she heard his tone. "Why does it matter?"

"Well, _I _want to go."

Mi Nyu stared at her brother in disbelief. Then, she said, "No you don't. You hate Tae Kyung."

"I don't _hate_ him," Mi Nam argued.

"No, no way. You just want to go so you can irritate him. Don't think I didn't notice how rough you were being during your little dunking contest yesterday."

"Oh, come on! He was being just as bad!"

"Well I don't think we need a repeat today-"

"There _won't_ be a repeat. We got it out of our systems yesterday. And it's not like we're _kids_."

"You're acting like kids."

"Look, you're still new to living in the city, and you're going to lunch with a guy that you don't know very well."

Mi Nyu quietly laughed, because she knew Tae Kyung _plenty_ well. She knew how he organized his underwear drawer.

"And so it is my responsibility as your brother to accompany you for the day."

Mi Nyu rolled her eyes, but said, "Fine. _You're_ the one telling Tae Kyung that you're tagging along, though."

* * *

_Ugh, gross_, Mi Nam decided as he watched Tae Kyung and Mi Nyu argue over a skirt.

"It's too tight!" Mi Nyu argued, a blush on her cheeks and a pout on her lips.

"It's form fitting, not tight," Tae Kyung snapped, his eyes narrowed. "And it fits perfectly. You're getting it. Try on something else."

Mi Nyu argued for another few moments, and Tae Kyung replied with short, snappy responses, but eventually Mi Nyu agreed, then went into the changing rooms to try on a dress.

Good Lord, they didn't even know they were flirting with each other.

Mi Nyu he could understand. She had always been naïve. His friends in school had started getting crushes on his sister when they were 12-years-old. He had seen every type of crush, every permutation of flirting, and he had counted the broken hearts his sister had left behind her without even knowing anyone was in love with her to begin with.

The only thing new about _this_ situation was that Tae Kyung was just as oblivious as Mi Nyu. Maybe even more so.

_It serves him right_, Mi Nam thought with a frown. Tae Kyung had done nothing but hurt her and be mean to her from the beginning. And he'd already stolen one kiss. He wasn't getting another.

But at the same time, it was kind of sad, watching Tae Kyung feign disinterest as he looked at his phone in an attempt to keep his eyes off of Mi Nyu. And Mi Nam had heard the conversation Tae Kyung had with Mi Nyu at the restaurant – Mi Nam knew the other man had made up that bit about Mi Nyu's first three days as his PA being _job training_. And then Mi Nyu had explained that she didn't need Mi Nam's credit card to pay for her purchases, because Tae Kyung was just going to take it out of her paycheck... Go Mi Nam knew what was going on here. This guy, _a rock star_, one of the most famous celebrities in the country, was pulling at his sister's pig tails, like an eight-year-old. He was being mean to her, and then when he felt sorry for his actions, he did something nice for her but still made it seem like what he was doing was normal, nothing out of the ordinary at all, nothing special or nice, when for him, it really _was_.

"So where are we going for lunch?" Go Mi Nam asked knowingly.

Beside him, Tae Kyung cursed. "I need to call them and change the reservation so that it's for three people instead of two," he sighed, pulling out his phone.

Mi Nam watched Tae Kyung as he called the restaurant. Mi Nam was new to Seoul, and he didn't yet know his way around the city, but he recognized the name of the restaurant Tae Kyung called. The place was nice.

"Mi Nyu isn't impressed by money," Mi Nam declared when the call was over.

Tae Kyung gave Mi Nam the same look as when he'd started talking about Yoo He Yi in the locker rooms after their photo shoot, as if he'd suddenly sprouted a second head. "I don't care about what impresses your sister," he said.

_So oblivious_, Mi Nam thought.

* * *

Lunch was _hilarious_, Go Mi Nam decided. He was probably the only person who thought that, though.

"I told you she wasn't impressed by money," he reminded Tae Kyung after they had settled the bill and were waiting for Go Mi Nyu to come out from the bathroom.

"What?" Tae Kyung snapped, glaring at the wall across from them.

"Not only is she unimpressed by money, but the over excess of money intimidates her a bit. And when she's intimidated, she gets nervous, and when she's nervous, she gets clumsy, and when she gets clumsy, _this_ happens." Go Mi Nam waved an arm to encompass the four overturned tables and chairs with food splattered all over the seats, and then the still smoking drapes which had _luckily_ been put out by a fire extinguisher before any _real_ damage had been caused to the building.

And Mi Nyu was in the bathroom, cleaning some spilled sauce off of the brand new dress she was wearing and _probably_ crying her eyes out.

"It's not _my _fault she's clumsy," Tae Kyung snapped.

Mi Nam wanted to argue that it _was_, but he knew that wasn't true. Mi Nyu had always been a bit clumsy. But still.

"Sure, she's clumsy, but even Mi Nyu isn't usually clumsy enough to start fires and cause small panics. Seriously, Tae Kyung, be nice to her. She might not be outgoing and charismatic like most of the women you're used to meeting in the industry, but that doesn't give you the right to tease her for it and make her feel bad about herself. She feels bad enough for all of this as it is, and you don't need to make it worse."

"Whatever," Tae Kyung muttered with a roll of his eyes.


	7. Chapter 7

The past week had been nothing but rehearsals and fittings and interviews. It seemed like everyone in the agency was working overtime to make sure that the addition of a new member to A.N. Jell went smoothly and quickly.

Although, Shin Woo had to admit, having Mi Nyu around to help out made things easier. It turned out that half the things she did for Tae Kyung could be done for the other members of A.N. Jell at the same time. The week after she'd been "hired" to work for Tae Kyung, she began to organize the schedules for the other band members as well, and she made sure that they all had everything they needed while they were in the studio, and she brought them snacks and drinks to meetings.

"Isn't that all the stuff that Manager Ma is supposed to do?" Jeremy asked when they were talking about Mi Nyu in passing one day.

"Mi Nyu is way better at Manager Ma's job than he is," Shin Woo had answered.

By the end of the week, Mi Nyu had gotten a hang of her work duties, and she was comfortable with her job, and so she really began to relax in the dorm and around the band members.

She seemed happy, so Shin Woo decided that he could stand to ask Mi Nam, "Have you heard from that woman? The one who said she was your aunt?"

Shin Woo braced himself for bad news, like that the woman had given Mi Nam an address, and Mi Nyu would be off to find the address and meet her mother, and then she would leave for Rome and they would never see her again. And that wouldn't work, because the band was starting to _depend_ on her.

But Mi Nam shook his head. "She sent me a picture last week, after she heard that I was joining A.N. Jell. But now it's like she's disappeared. I have a feeling that she's not having an easy time of things right now, you know? Manager Ma is looking for her, though."

Shin Woo nodded, relieved. If the woman wasn't trying to make contact with Mi Nam, then maybe she wasn't the real deal. Maybe Mi Nyu would be around for a while yet.

* * *

Tae Kyung couldn't stand it anymore.

"I'm sorry, are you _my_ assistant, or Jeremy's?"

Mi Nyu blinked back at him, as if Tae Kyung were speaking a foreign language, and she didn't understand the question. However, she still managed to say, "I'm your assistant, of course."

"Then why are you managing Jeremy's schedule?" Tae Kyung snapped.

"Well... I'm managing _everyone's_ schedules. I mean... they're almost exactly the same. You have the same practice hours, and you go to most of the same events. It's really easy to keep track of everyone."

And that was true, damn it.

Grasping, he said, "But _I'm_ the one employing you, and _I'm_ the one you owe a debt to. I'm supposed to be your first priority-"

"You are my first priority!" Mi Nyu rushed to assure him.

"Then why did you go to the television studio with Shin Woo, yesterday?"

"Well, you were on your jog, so you didn't need me, and I thought he might like someone there to show some support for his interview, just in case he got nervous or needed some company-"

"What if I'd gotten hurt while I was running and needed someone to come and get me?" he argued.

"Well... You had your cell phone, right? You could have called me, and I would have left to get you..."

"You should jog with me," Tae Kyung blurted.

"I... What?"

"You should start coming with me on my jogs," Tae Kyung told her. "It's good for your health, for your muscles and your lungs. It will give you more energy. And if you have more energy, you'll be better able to accomplish your tasks."

Tae Kyung wanted to kick himself. He sounded like an _idiot_. He was pulling excuses out of his ass, listing off reasons that she should spend more time with him as opposed to his band mates.

It wasn't that he particularly liked her company, but he felt... possessive of her. After all, she was_ his_ assistant. She owed _him_ a debt_._ And he was being _so _nice to her. The tasks he'd been giving her were _nothing_ compared to the list of chores he had initially planned to give her. The least she could do was give him proper attention! But instead she was treating him as if he were the exact same as anyone else in the group!

And in response, he was making an idiot of himself.

He was was opening his mouth to retract his invitation, to say never mind, it was a stupid, horrible idea, when Go Mi Nyu spoke first.

"Having more energy would be nice. Plus, I've heard that exercise helps make people happier..."

"It releases endorphins," Tae Kyung mindlessly agreed. Because... was his lame excuse actually working?

"Well, I've never gone jogging before, but... okay. I'll try jogging with you tomorrow."

* * *

Mi Nyu hardly made it a mile before she had to stop, bending over with her hands on her knees and panting with exertion.

Tae Kyung had kept running for half a block before he realized that she hadn't just fallen behind, but had completely stopped. He jogged back to her with a scowl on his lips.

"Sorry," she panted. "Sorry. Just... I guess running really isn't my thing. Go on without me, I'll just go back." Because she knew his favorite jogging routes. She knew that Tae Kyung usually ran three to four miles every day, and that the mile she had managed to keep up with was little more than a warm-up for him.

But at her words, he scowled instead of continuing his jog without her.

"Just like that, you're going to quit?" he asked quietly, and Mi Nyu recognized that he was getting angry, _really_ angry, not the teasing angry she had noticed him pulling with her a time or two, or the annoyed angry which was his natural state most days, but _really_ angry, which she hadn't seen in... a while, Mi Nyu realized. She hadn't seen him _really_ angry since the hospital, before they'd made their deal.

"I... I don't understand," Mi Nyu said quietly. "I can't... I really can't run anymore, Tae Kyung. My legs are already sore, and if I try to run anymore, I'm afraid-"

He rolled his eyes. "Of _course_ you shouldn't run any more today. It's only your first time jogging. Don't you know _anything_? You're not going to be able to run a marathon the very first time you go out for a jog. It takes _practice _to be able to run more than a couple of miles. But just because it's hard isn't a good reason to just give up and stop trying. You shouldn't-"

"Okay!" Mi Nyu cried, interrupting before Tae Kyung could get himself any more worked up (and she _really_ didn't understand why he felt so strongly about this, but if he was getting this upset, then it must have been because it was something important).

At her cry, Tae Kyung stopped rambling, but his eyes narrowed at her quick, easy agreement. "What do you mean, okay?"

"I mean... of course you're right. I shouldn't give up just because it was hard this one time. I just... I've never jogged or played any sports before. I didn't know that it would get easier. Now that I know, though, I'll keep jogging with you until I'm good enough to go more than two miles, like you said."

She was agreeing with him because she was learning that simply doing as Tae Kyung wanted was the _easiest_ thing to do, sometimes, and trying to argue in any way was like trying to teach a brick wall to tap dance. But she was also agreeing because clearly this was something _important_ to him, even if she didn't understand _why_ it was important to him.

After Mi Nyu agreed to continue jogging with Tae Kyung, he studied her with suspicious eyes for another few moments before he nodded and apparently let it go.

"You shouldn't run again, so we'll have to walk back," he said tersely. "Which actually isn't a bad thing, because if you stop moving too quickly after doing a strenuous activity, your muscles could seize up and cramp, and you'll be even more sore tomorrow than you already are right now. When we get back to the house, I'll show you some stretches that will also help keep your muscles from cramping or straining, and then we can meet up with the others for dinner."

Mi Nyu nodded, grateful, because she had never seriously tried a sport before, and she didn't have any idea what she was doing. Plus, she'd just somehow managed to divert one of Tae Kyung's tantrums and keep him in a civil mood. Her chest swelled with pride at that thought.

Gaining confidence in her ability to deal with Tae Kyung, she decided to try for some civil conversation. "You know a lot about running," she stated as they began to walk the mile back to the dorms. "Were you ever on a track team?"

Tae Kyung hummed. "I was on a team when I was younger, still in school."

"Did you like it? Or was it something you did just to keep in shape?" she asked, because it seemed like the guys did lots of things they didn't like in order to make sure they kept in good shape.

"Both, I think," Tae Kyung said thoughtfully. And Mi Nyu watched him intently, because it was strange to just... hear him talk, without ordering her around, or criticizing her, or criticizing _anything_, really. "It was one of the only club activities I was ever able to participate in. I mean, I was in choir, but... I wasn't just _in choir_. I was always competing in singing competitions and talent shows. I had an agent by the time I was 13-years-old. And I was always competing with everyone around me. And even though it was the same with track, the competition was... different. I was actually one of the slowest members of the team, but no one ever judged me or discluded me. I was still part of the team..."

"Ah, that's why you're in a band," Mi Nyu realized. It was only after Tae Kyung turned to look at her with narrowed eyes that she realized that she'd said that out loud. "I-I mean, it makes sense," she quickly continued, "that you want to do something that you're good at, but you don't want to do it alone. I mean, everyone says that you're good enough of a singer and song writer to have a solo career, and that you don't need A.N. Jell. But... no one wants to be alone."

Tae Kyung scoffed. "Oh, please. I don't need anyone to hold my hand and kiss my boo-boos. I do fine on my own."

Mi Nyu _just_ held herself back from rolling her eyes at him. "That's not what I meant. I _just_ _said_ that everyone knows that you don't need A.N. Jell. I'm just saying that I can understand why you would _want_ A.N. Jell, and Manager Ma, and Coordinator Wang. And a personal assistant. It's nice to have that extra support when times are bad, but it's nice to have people to celebrate with when times are good, too. Just because you can do things on your own doesn't mean you have to."

It was probably why he hadn't thought of hiring an assistant sooner. Tae Kyung was so prideful, and he was such a perfectionist that he probably believed that if he didn't do everything himself, then he was somehow lacking, and he thought that if he asked for help he would seem weak.

It was kind of sad, she thought, that he believed that he _couldn't_ ask for help. She wondered if he _ever_ would have hired an assistant if she hadn't messed up so badly when they first met, and if he hadn't needed to find a way for her to pay him back.

"It's a good thing you have the agency and the band," she declared. "And me," she added as an afterthought. "With all of us, that means that you never have to go though anything on your own."

Tae Kyung gave her a strange look, but he didn't argue with her any further.


	8. Chapter 8

"She can't be real," Tae Kyung declared.

"Yoo He Yi?" Mi Nam asked absently as he stared at his cell phone. "Because I thought that we had established that no, she can't. You even called her a fake fairy, remember?"

"What? No. Your sister."

"My sister isn't real?" Mi Nam asked with a frown, looking up from his phone to give Tae Kyung a confused frown.

And in that moment, he looked _exactly_ like his sister. It was strange, because while everyone had initially thought that he and Mi Nyu looked alike, people stopped thinking so after they'd gotten to know the two and had seen how different they were.

The expression soon cleared from Mi Nam's face, though, and it was replaced with his usual playful, cocky grin. "You finally realized that her niceness isn't an act, didn't you?"

Tae Kyung rolled his eyes, because, "_No_. I'm saying that it _has_ to be an act, because no one is that nice!"

"It's called being a good person," Mi Nam argued. "And sure, it's not often that you meet someone as naturally kind-hearted and honest as my sister, but those people exist. They're just a very rare breed."

Tae Kyung sighed, because he'd only approached Go Mi Nam in the first place because the guy had been particularly slow and idiotic today, and Tae Kyung had been hoping to trick the guy into letting slip some hint of Mi Nyu's intentions. But the twins were too smart and well coordinated for that, even when Mi Nam had been distracted by his phone the entire day during rehearsal.

Even as these thoughts whirled through Tae Kyung's head, Go Mi Nam was once again looking at his phone's screen.

"Are you waiting for a call?" Tae Kyung asked.

"No. Well, I... yes, actually. Our first concert is going to be at the Asian Festival, you know?"

Tae Kyung nodded.

"Well, Yoo He Yi was confirmed as the MC yesterday, and I was really excited that I'd get to see her and have a chance to talk to her, but... now someone else wants to meet with me during the concert, and..."

Tae Kyung remembered the conversation he'd overheard Mi Nam and Shin Woo having nearly two weeks before, the one where they were talking about a woman claiming to be the twins' aunt.

"Someone else?" Tae Kyung pressed, his gut churning, but commanding himself to remain calm until he could understand what exactly was going on.

"Yeah, um... I... I'm looking for my mother. And a couple of weeks ago, a woman claiming to be my aunt contacted me. She might be able to tell me about my mother, but I've been having a hard time getting in touch with her. Well, now she wants to talk with me, and I'm supposed to receive a call..."

Tae Kyung scowled, because beyond all else, he was a professional. "This isn't going to effect your performance, is it?

Mi Nam blinked at the sudden change of mood. "I – what?"

"This is your first performance. Most people are going to see this concert as an indication of how the rest of your career will go. You'll need to give this concert your all. I know you want to find your mother, but... what about the future of your career?"

Mi Nam looked unsure. "The whole reason I wanted to become famous was so that I could find my mother..."

"And after that?" Tae Kyung asked. "After you find your mother, are you suddenly going to _stop_ wanting to be famous? Are you going to stop playing instruments and start disliking music?"

Mi Nam seemed offended by the very idea. "Of course not!"

"Then don't ruin your career before it's even really begun!" Tae Kyung snapped. "Let Mi Nyu meet the woman."

And as soon as Tae Kyung had made the suggestion, he knew that it was the very worst idea that he'd had since meeting the twins. Yet, Mi Nam was nodding his head. "Yeah, that could work. If my sister was the one to go to the meeting, she'd _have_ to come back, to tell me what she was able to learn, if nothing else. And I'll be able to focus on the concert... and I'll get to see Yoo He Yi..."

Tae Kyung wanted to kick himself. He couldn't say _why_ he had such a bad feeling about this plan, but he regretted speaking his idea out loud. Mi Nam was already on board, though, and Tae Kyung couldn't take it back, especially when he had no idea of how to argue against this being the best course of action.

* * *

Tae Kyung's heart was beating fast, and adrenaline was rushing through him.

Mi Nam's hands were shaking, and he was laughing. "That was amazing!" he was saying. "It was... That was the _best_! I don't know why I feel like this, though, like my legs are about to give out..."

"Performance rush," Shin Woo explained. "It can be pretty overwhelming the first few times. Especially at performances like this, where there's a huge crowd with a lot of energy. You'll get used to it."

"It never gets boring, though," Jeremy was laughing.

Tae Kyung's adrenaline rush was nothing like the familiar performance high he got after a good show, though. He felt uneasy and on edge, and there was nothing _exciting_ about the twist to his stomach.

Not wanting to upset the rest of the band when they were still celebrating an amazing performance, Tae Kyung ducked down a hall and called Manager Ma, who had gone with Mi Nyu to meet her aunt, the man offering emotional support when her brother couldn't be there. If Mi Nyu was still in her meeting with the woman, then Manager Ma was more likely to answer his phone than Mi Nyu was of answering hers.

Tae Kyung was surprised when Manager Ma answered on the first ring.

The man was audibly crying when he answered the phone, but he also sounded slightly panicked. "The woman was really Mi Nam and Mi Nyu's aunt," Ma said, his voice hitching. "But she said... She said that their mother was dead. Mi Nyu was upset and... She ran away. I can't find Mi Nyu."

_Damn it_. Of all the irresponsible – the woman was probably lost! If she was as upset as Manager Ma said... That was really bad news, after all. She and Mi Nam had both been so excited to meet their mother. But Ma should have _kept an eye on her_. That was the whole reason Tae Kyung allowed the man to go, instead of demanding he be here for the concert!

Abruptly ending the call, Tae Kyung sent a text to President Ahn informing him of the bad news before stating that he was going to find Mi Nyu before she hurt herself. President Ahn's reply demanded that Tae Kyung meet him near the VIP parking garage.

"Is this true?" President Ahn demanded when they were face to face, waving his phone around. "Their mother is dead and Go Mi Nyu is missing? I didn't even know they were orphans! I didn't know they were looking for their parents! And you decided to tell me _right now, after Mi Nam's first performance?_"

"Manager Ma was supposed to be looking after Mi Nyu while she met her aunt," Tae Kyung snapped. "Was there a reason you wanted to meet with me? I need to go find her before she gets into even more trouble. I won't be going to the press conference-"

"No, that's good. I mean, it will be easier to make excuses for you than it would for Mi Nam right now. He's supposed to be the star today, after all. But you rode here in the A.N. Jell van, didn't you? Here-" President Ahn handed Tae Kyung the keys to his own car. "I'll tell Mi Nam about his mother after the press conference is over and the cameras are gone. You find Mi Nyu before I have to tell him that not only will he never get to see his mother, but his sister is missing, as well."

Tae Kyung gave a brisk nod and took the keys from President Ahn, unable to properly express his gratitude in his hurry to get in the car and look for Mi Nyu.

Manager Ma and Mi Nyu had met the woman at the agency, so that was where Tae Kyung went to look for her. She had left on foot, so she couldn't have gone far...

Sure enough, Tae Kyung found Mi Nyu after driving up and down the streets around the agency for only fifteen minutes. He found her five blocks away, collapsed against a wall and crying.

As Tae Kyung brought the car to a stop beside her and got out, there were a dozen things he wanted to say - _Get off the ground, I'm sorry, It will be okay, Seriously who knows how many germs you're sitting on right now, Good God STOP CRYING. _Tae Kyung was intelligent enough to know that demanding that she stop crying was highly insensitive – he'd cried for his mother, after all, when she'd first abandoned him, and Mi Nyu deserved the same allowances. He also knew that of all the things to worry about just then, germs from sitting on the ground was not one of them. And saying sorry, or promising that everything would be okay... They sounded like empty platitudes, when the woman had just found out that her mother was dead.

He had to do _something_, though. He _couldn't_ _stand_ seeing people cry. And Mi Nyu didn't deserve this kind of pain. Sure, she was clumsy and foolish and she trusted people too easily, but she was the last person to deserve feeling this way.

So Tae Kyung kneeled on the ground and hugged her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her against his chest.

Mi Nyu collapsed into him, leaning against him with her full weight, burying her face in his shirt, and crying even harder than before.

He had intended for the hug to be brief, a way of letting her know that he was there to support her without saying something stupid which might sound insensitive or hurt her feelings and make the whole thing worse. But after she was in his arms, Tae Kyung found himself settling on the ground next to her (despite the germs) and letting her lean against him and cry (even though she was getting his shirt wet with her tears). Worrying about anything else just seemed... pointless and unimportant.

Tae Kyung couldn't say how long he sat there with Mi Nyu – it was long enough that her sobs died down to sniffles and his legs were past cramping and starting to go numb from the awkward position he'd been holding himself in.

Luckily, Tae Kyung's phone rang, giving him an excuse to pull away from the hug and rearrange his limbs into a position that wouldn't leave his muscles cramped.

Glancing at his Caller ID and recognizing Go Mi Nam's information, he quickly answered the phone. "I'm with her. She stopped a few blocks from the agency," he said by way of greeting.

Mi Nam's sigh of relief was audible over the phone. "Is she okay? She isn't hurt or anything?"

"No, she's just shaken up. She's started to calm down, though."

"Let me talk to her," Mi Nam demanded.

Tae Kyung didn't hesitate to hand his phone over to Mi Nyu, because she was still sniffling, and he was still sitting on the hard concrete ground, and he really didn't know how much longer he could handle this.

"Oppa?" Mi Nyu sniffed as she took the phone and started speaking with her brother. "She said - she said..." Mi Nyu looked as if she would begin sobbing again, but something Mi Nam said made her pause. "No, shortly after giving birth. She didn't, she didn't live long... I didn't... I didn't ask... No, Tae Kyung's with me. He has a car." The longer she was speaking to Mi Nam, the calmer and more composed she became. "Press conference?... Oh, right! Oh, Mi Nam, I'm so sorry, I completely forgot about your concert... Okay, we'll talk at home, see you then."

Abruptly ending the call, Mi Nyu took a deep, shaky breath and rubbed the last of her tears from her eyes. She seemed to process her surroundings for the first time since Tae Kyung had found her, and she began to blush.

"Where... Oh, no. You missed the press conference, didn't you? Oh, Tae Kyung, I'm so sorry! I left my phone and purse at the agency... I wasn't thinking... You shouldn't have left the conference for me-"

Tae Kyung cut her off with a wave of his hand. "I didn't," he lied. "I... Did it for your brother, my band mate. I did it as a favor to him, so that everything would go smoothly for him tonight."

Because that was what President Ahn had assumed, wasn't it? He had agreed that it would be better for Tae Kyung to go look for Mi Nyu while Go Mi Nam attended the press conference. And it would be ridiculous for anyone to think that he had dropped everything and rushed off to find her the moment he'd found out that she could be in trouble. Preposterous.

"I'll text Manager Ma and tell him to bring your things to the dorm. Now come on," he demanded as he stood and held out a hand to help her stand up. "Get off the ground and let's head back to the dorms. I'm sure your brother is already on his way there."

"Yeah," Go Mi Nyu murmured. "Yeah, let's go home."

In the car, they were quiet for most of the ride. If Go Mi Nyu noticed that Tae Kyung wasn't driving his own car, she didn't say anything about it. But then, she didn't say much of anything. Not until they were almost to the dorms, at least.

"Thank you for coming and finding me," she said as Tae Kyung steered the car into their driveway. "I really appreciate it. I know you only did it because you're friends with Mi Nam, but... thanks all the same."

"What?" Tae Kyung asked, nearly driving the car into some hedges. "I'm not friends with him!"

Mi Nyu blinked owlishly at him. "But... you're looking after me. And... and you listen to him talk about Yoo He Yi."

"I-He told you about Yoo He Yi?" Tae Kyung asked.

"Sure. He wouldn't stop talking about her that night after she sat with us for dinner. I've never seen him get this worked up over a girl before. I'm not very good at giving advice for that sort of thing, though, so I'm glad he has you to talk to. Mi Nam always seems to be in a better mood after talking to you."

_When?_ Tae Kyung wanted to ask, because he and Mi Nam _never_ talked to each other.

Except, they did, he realized. At least, Mi Nam talked to _him_.

The realization was a strange one, and it left him a little off balance. Before he could work through the implications of that realization, though, Mi Nyu interrupted his thoughts by saying, "Anyway, thanks for finding me and bringing me home." With a deep sigh, she said, "I hope Mi Nam is doing okay. Finding our mother was a dream of his for _such_ a long time."

They didn't need to worry, though, because when they walked into the entertainment room, they found Jeremy, Shin Woo and Go Mi Nam rolling on the floor laughing as they watched early tapings of the band's first promotional campaign.

* * *

Mi Nam and Mi Nyu were still giggling when they reached their room.

"I thought I'd already seen him loose his temper," Mi Nyu was laughing. "But that was..."

"That was awesome!"Mi Nam laughed. "Did you see how red his face got? And it was such a stupid thing to get upset about! You remember that radio add I did when we were still in school?"

Mi Nam grinned when Mi Nyu began to giggle, because yeah, he'd had to speak in this weird monster growl, and he'd sounded ridiculous. His friends had made fun of him for months after the commercial had aired on the radio.

It was fun, remembering the stupid, desperate things he'd agreed to do when he'd been trying to establish himself in the entertainment industry in any way possible.

Giving one last chuckle as he remembered the videos Shin Woo and Jeremy had shown him, Mi Nam said, "It was nice of them to try and cheer us up."

"Yeah," his sister agreed, giving a long sigh. "I was... I was really hoping we'd finally get to see her..."

"Me, too," Mi Nam said, giving a sigh of his own.

The two of them plopped onto Mi Nam's bed, and the mood was suddenly morose.

"Are you okay?" Mi Nyu asked her brother. "I know that you wanted to find her more than anything in the world..."

Mi Nam shrugged. "Honestly? I wanted to find her for you. You always seemed so lost when we were growing up, and I thought that maybe if I could find her for you, you wouldn't be lost anymore. But even so... I still wanted to meet her for myself, too. And yeah, learning that she isn't here anymore... that's really disappointing, but... a few days ago, Tae Kyung pointed out that my life wouldn't end after I found our mom, and he reminded me that working with A.N. Jell is what I want to do, and I'll still have that, when all else is said and done. It was... kind of exactly what I needed to hear."

Mi Nyu hummed. "Yeah. He might not care much for me, but he's a really good friend to you. It makes me really happy to know that you can depend on him." Giving Mi Nam's shoulder one more pat, Mi Nyu stood from the bed and went to prepare for bed.

His sister's statement left Mi Nam speechless. Because how could she think that he and Tae Kyung were friends? Sure, Tae Kyung was the only guy he could talk to about Yoo He Yi because he was the only person other than himself who _really_ knew her. And he could depend on Tae Kyung's professional opinion, because they were in A.N. Jell together, and their actions affected the entire group, and so they tried to support each other. Plus, Tae Kyung had been working in the music industry for years, and so he had a lot of really good advice, and-

"Damn," Go Mi Nam quietly sighed to himself as his sister prepared for bed. "That guy really is my best friend, isn't he?"

Which sucked. Because Mi Nam was kind of tired of his best friends being in love with his sister.

It wouldn't be too bad, though. Not now that he knew about all of the humiliating things Tae Kyung had done in the name of advancing his career. He'd be able to tease the guy about that radish video for _years_. The very memory of said video made him chuckle as he settled at his desk to check over his e-mails before bed. "What a dork," he muttered out loud.

And his sister, who knew exactly who and what he was talking about, said, "He's not a dork. He's really... Cool. Even back then he was the coolest."

Mi Nam rolled his eyes, because _of course_ she thought that Tae Kyung was coolest when he was in fact acting like a total fool.


	9. Chapter 9

When Mi Nyu woke up on Monday morning, she felt better than she thought she would.

Because yes, she was very, very disappointed that her mother was in fact gone, but she and Go Mi Nam had taken Sunday to mourn her, and now Mi Nyu was just relieved that she and her brother had received any sort of closure at all. They had spent _years_ wondering if she was out there somewhere, looking for them just as hard as they were looking for her, and they could just never find each other. It was like a weight had been lifted from her chest, just from _knowing_.

So she was whistling as she made her way to the kitchen for breakfast.

She passed Mi Nam on the stairs, who was wearing a wide smile of his own.

"You usually aren't so happy this early in the morning," she noted after they'd greeted each other for the day. "What has you in such a good mood?"

"Oh, I've just been partaking in my favorite past time," he told her with a wink.

Mi Nyu sighed, because she just _knew_ those words meant that her brother had been teasing Tae Kyung again.

"If I have to deal with him in a grouchy mood this morning-" Mi Nyu began to say in warning, but Mi Nam waved a hand at her in dismissal as he began to continue up the steps to their room.

"He's fine," her brother promised. "He hasn't had his coffee yet, so he doesn't have the energy to work himself into a proper indignant rage. And by the time his pot is finished brewing, he'll already be over it."

As Mi Nyu started back downstairs, she shook her head, because Tae Kyung didn't just _get over_ things, and she prayed that her brother was right, because Tae Kyung had actually been manageable the past few days, and if her brother did anything to make him irritable and cranky again...

Mi Nam was therefore surprised when Tae Kyung met her with a level stare, and instead of yelling at her about anything, he simply asked, "Do you think I'd look better with short hair?"

"Well," she said, briefly remembering the short hair he'd worn in the video she'd seen of A.N. Jell earlier in their career. "Yes, I think you would. Your hair wouldn't hang in your eyes, then, and you have really pretty eyes."

It took Mi Nyu a few moments to realize exactly what she had said, and her eyes widened as she froze and waited to hear what exactly Tae Kyung thought about that.

But he only said, "I never gave you the schedule for today. Which is fine, because the entire thing would have had to be rewritten. Mi Nyu, call Coordinator Wang and tell her to schedule an appointment with my hair artist this morning."

Mi Nyu stared at Tae Kyung with wide eyes, wondering if he was _truly_ going to let her statement go. However, as she stared at him, she realized that _he_ was staring at the slowly filling pot of coffee, and he probably hadn't heard anything she'd said after hearing her response to his question.

Praising Tae Kyung's dependence on caffeine to kick start his brain in the mornings, Mi Nyu quickly said, "Of course, I'll call her right away, then I'll talk to President Ahn and Manager Ma about any other appointments you might have today. "

Tae Kyung hummed his affirmation, and Go Mi Nyu rushed out of the kitchen before she could say anything else embarrassing to Tae Kyung.

As she prepared to begin her day, Mi Nyu absently wondered why Tae Kyung suddenly wanted a hair cut. Was it because of something Mi Nam had said while he was in the kitchen?

And why did Mi Nyu feel so embarrassed? She didn't _usually_ get embarrassed when she was complimenting people. Thinking someone had pretty eyes was nothing to be embarrassed about, was it?

* * *

While Tae Kyung had his hair cut, Go Mi Nyu looked through her e-mail.

"Tae Kyung, why does the agency want me to sign a contract?" she asked. "Aren't _you_ my employer?"

"What are you talking about?" Tae Kyung sighed, watching the mirror as the stylist trimmed his hair.

"President Ahn just sent me an employment contract," she she told him.

"An employment contract to be my assistant?" Tae Kyung asked with a frown, because while it was quickly becoming common knowledge that Go Mi Nyu was his personal assistant, he thought it was also common knowledge that she wasn't employed through the agency.

"It doesn't say– Oh. It's here. Um..." suddenly sounding unsure, she said, "He said he wants me to start training as A.N. Jell's manager."

Tae Kyung had to keep himself from jerking out of his chair. Because _what_? "Where did the President get an idea like _that_? Has Manager Ma decided to quit?"

"No, he says that the agency wants to make Manager Ma responsible for overseeing merchandising."

Which... actually made a lot of sense. Ma was a sub-par manager, at best, but he was an amazing publicist. A.N. Jell wouldn't enjoy half the success they did now if it weren't for Manager Ma's hair-brained schemes.

But... "You're _my_ assistant."

"President Ahn says it won't be much different than what I'm doing for the band right now. I'd have more responsibilities, and a... stronger presence with the band? But..."

Tae Kyung scowled. Because why did people keep trying to steal his assistant?

Behind him, Mi Nyu began to chew on her lip. "It's a contract for two years," she murmured to herself, and Tae Kyung's eyebrow twitched. Because _two years _sounded a lot like _not_ going to Rome.

Quietly, Mi Nyu sighed. "I can talk to President Ahn about it during lunch..."

"Lunch?" Tae Kyung asked, because he hadn't seen anything about lunch with President Ahn in his day's schedule.

Before he could press the matter, however, the stylist finished with his hair.

He didn't even bother inspecting it before handing Mi Nyu his credit card and telling her, "Settle the bill. I need to make a call."

"Okay, I'll meet you outside," she answered, taking the card and going to the front desk.

With Mi Nyu suitably distracted, Tae Kyung hurried outside and called Mi Nam.

"Tae Kyung?" Mi Nam asked when he answered his phone. "You never call me..."

"President Ahn just sent your sister an employment contract."

"Oh _no_," Mi Nam breathed. "It's too soon! I – I mean-"

"I know about Rome, idiot."

"You do?"

"Yes. And the contract stipulates that she would act as A.N. Jell's manager for two years."

"No – No! It's too soon! She still mentions going to Rom at least once a day! If she has to make a decision between staying in Korea with A.N. Jell and going to Rome to become a nun, she'll choose Rome in a heartbeat!"

Tae Kyung sighed when he realized that Mi Nam was beginning to panic. "Calm down," he demanded. "Look, I can talk to President Ahn and convince him to forget about getting her to sign a contract until after she's been with the band for a trail period. You need to talk to your sister and get her to understand that she doesn't have to decided one way or the other just yet, okay?"

"Yeah... Yeah, I can do that. We need to get to them quickly, though, before Mi Nyu and President Ahn have a chance to talk."

"We're going directly to the agency after we're finished here-"

"Yeah, where's here? Why weren't you at practice this morning?"

"What? I had an appointment-"

Abruptly, Mi Nam began to laugh. "You cut your hair, didn't you?!"

Hissing in frustrated embarrassment (Mi Nam had teased him about his "emo" hair for half an hour that morning. Hadn't he gotten it out of his system?), Tae Kyung snapped, "Would you please _focus_? We'll be there in fourty-five minutes. If you want to distract your sister, you need to catch her at the front door."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll be there. And hey! Thanks, Tae Kyung!"

With that, Go Mi Nam disconnected the call, and Tae Kyung was left staring at the dark screen of his phone. Because did Go Mi Nam just _thank_ him?

Oh, God, he _did_. Because Tae Kyung was _helping _the guy right now. _Why? Why_ was he doing this?

Behind him, Mi Nyu came out of the salon. "Tae Kyung? Are you ready to go?" she called.

Oh yeah. He was helping because he didn't want to loose his assistant.

"Yeah," he said as he collected himself and started towards the car. "Yeah, let's go."

Once they were in the car and well on their way to the agency, Tae Kyung remembered something.

"Did you say you were having lunch with President Ahn today?" Tae Kyung asked, and Mi Nyu twitched.

"What? No, I didn't... I wouldn't say anything like that..."

His eyes narrowing, Tae Kyung said, "Yes you did."

In the seat beside him, Mi Nyu remained silent. Quickly glancing at her, he saw that she was staring at her hands and chewing her lip.

"Hey. What are you hiding from me?" Tae Kyung asked, his temper beginning to rise. Why would she be hiding something from him? Was she scheming with President Ahn? Was that why the President was _really_ offering her an employment contract?

This... This was it! This was the moment that Go Mi Nyu revealed herself as a ladder climbing, back stabbing, lying stupid fake!

Go Mi Nyu sighed, and Tae Kyung braced himself for the big reveal, and then-

"It was supposed to be a surprise," Mi Nyu murmured.

"What was supposed to be a surprise?" he asked suspiciously.

"A really famous singer wants to do a collaboration with you. President Ahn was going to take you to lunch to meet her."

Her. Her? "Who?" he asked, thinking through the list of women who had requested a collaboration with him in the past. They didn't usually go through President Ahn to get to him, though...

"It's supposed to be a surprise!" she argued. "President Ahn is really excited and-"

"Go Mi Nyu," Tae Kyung said slowly. "I _hate_ surprises."

Finally, _finally_ Mi Nyu gave a sigh of resignation. "We're going to lunch with Mo Hwa Ran-"

"No we're not," Tae Kyung automatically replied as he fought to keep himself from slamming on the breaks or swerving lanes.

"What?"

"I said _no_," he slowly repeated. Because lunch with his mother, and his boss, and Go Mi Nyu? That sounded like his worst nightmare come true.

"But... I thought..."

"You thought what?" Tae Kyung snapped.

"I thought you'd be happy. You have all of her records and movies in your room..."

And of _course_ Mi Nyu had noticed those. He had asked her to fetch things for him from his shelves often enough...

"And President Ahn says she was a top star for a really long time... I thought..."

"I'm not her fan," Tae Kyung told her, because she had to understand that much, at least. "I don't like her. I don't want lunch with her, and I _will not_ work with her."

"You don't like her," Mi Nyu repeated slowly. "But..."

"I _do not_ like her," Tae Kyung repeated, because it was worth repeating.

"Is... I don't..."

Tae Kyung took a deep breath and thought of how he would explain this. He wouldn't tell Mi Nyu that Mo Hwa Ran was his mother. Not after the woman had denied him for so, _so _long. She only wanted to speak with him now because he was famous. But when he _wasn't_ famous... when he was young, and when he had really needed her... she wasn't there. So when she wasn't famous, and she needed him? Well then he wouldn't be there for her, either.

"She's like Yoo He Yi," he finally said. "She's worse than Yoo He Yi. Mo Hwa Ran is as fake as they get."

"Oh," Mi Nyu murmured. "_Oh_. Oh, Tae Kyung, I'm so sorry! If I'd known, I wouldn't have..."

"We'll make an excuse," Tae Kyung decided. "It won't be hard. With all the work A.N. Jell has at the moment... I can hardly take on extra work."

"But... what about lunch?"

"Don't worry about it," Tae Kyung demanded. "I'll talk to President Ahn. We will not be meeting Mo Hwa Ran today."

* * *

"Where have you _been?_" Mi Nam cried when he saw Mi Nyu enter the agency. "I've been looking for you _all morning!_"

"Tae Kyung had an appoint-"

"I've convinced Yoo He Yi to come and spend the day at the studio with me!" her brother announced. "She's even going to have lunch with me! Help me decide where to take her!"

Mi Nyu sighed. "Oppa, Tae Kyung and I are going to meet President Ahn."

"_I'm_ going to meet President Ahn," Tae Kyung corrected. "Remember, Mi Nyu?"

"Oh, right. Yeah. Okay, Mi Nam, I'll help you."

At her pronouncement, Tae Kyung started for President Ahn's office, and Mi Nam began pulling her towards the A.N. Jell lounge area.

"What is this about Yoo He Yi?" Mi Nyu asked her brother. "She decided to spend the day with you? When did this happen?"

"Just a while ago," her brother said with a wide grin as they came upon the lounge. "I've been texting her and sending her flowers and gifts for a while, but this is the first time she's responded. She said she had to finish her appointment with her stylist, but she promised to meet me when she was finished!"

"Good for you, Oppa! So what kind of restaurant would you like to go to? With how often Tae Kyung sends me to get him food, I probably know every good restaurant in the city. I can definitely give you advice on where to take Yoo He Yi!"

"About that..." Mi Nam sighed. He flopped onto one of the sofas and announced, "You know that she's only talking to me because she's interested in meeting Tae Kyung, right?"

"Of course," Mi Nyu replied, because she had listened to her brother moan and groan about it ever since he'd met the woman.

"Well... We need to eat someplace that Tae Kyung would like. Because we need to get Tae Kyung to come to lunch, as well. That way Yoo He Yi will come..."

And Mi Nyu sighed. "For lunch? Yeah, I can get Tae Kyung to go to lunch with us."

"Thanks, Sis! You're a lifesaver!" Mi Nam declared.

* * *

_I am so efin smooth_, Mi Nam decided.

He knew why Yoo He Yi had suddenly responded to his texts this morning when she hadn't responded to any of his texts before. It was because she and Tae Kyung went to the same salon.

And now, he would manipulate Yoo He Yi into going on a date with him via Tae Kyung. And he would get Tae Kyung to come along via his sister.

It would be a double date, Mi Nam decided. _Me with Yoo He Yi, and my sister with Tae Kyung_.

Except that he was the only one who knew that it would be a double date, because Yoo He Yi was pining after Tae Kyung, and Tae Kyung was pining after Mi Nyu, and Mi Nyu was pining after Tae Kyung, and neither of them knew it.

_They'll figure it out soon enough_, Mi Nam decided. _Time is all I need_.

* * *

Mi Nyu was wearing one of the dresses he had bought her.

Of course, _most_ of the clothing she wore now-a-days were things which he had purchased for her, but this was different.

When they had gone shopping, they had spent most of the time arguing about what was appropriate and what wasn't, and Mi Nyu's definition of "appropriate" was far more conservative than Tae Kyung's.

The dress she was wearing out to lunch was _perfect_. It met Mi Nyu's standards in that the sleeves covered her shoulders and arms while the skirt fell to her calves. And it met Tae Kyung's standards in that the cloth was form fitting and the deep blue color of the fabric complimented Mi Nyu's skin tone.

Mi Nyu looked wonderful – not only because she was wearing a beautiful dress, but also because she looked _confident_. And Tae Kyung knew that most of her confidence came from her comfort.

_If only she was comfortable and confident in everything else I bought for her_, Tae Kyung thought. _Then she would be an assistant which I could take pride in._

* * *

"We have a reservation," Go Mi Nam announced.

The concierge studied his list for their reservation, then gave them a haughty wave to indicate that their seats were ready. Mi Nam followed behind the waiter while Mi Nyu and Tae Kyung trailed behind.

As they were shown to their table, Tae Kyung reminded Mi Nyu, "We're here for Yoo He Yi. And your brother."

"I _know_ that. But if we're here, Yoo He Yi will give you all of her attention, and she won't focus on my brother."

"But if I leave, she'll blow Mi Nam off and also leave, right? So I'm going to focus on you," Tae Kyung explained. "And then, hopefully she'll get frustrated with me and she'll move on to your brother."

When Tae Kyung was finished with his explanation, Mi Nyu sighed. "Can't you just explain to her that you're not interested?"

"No. Because that will just make her try harder," Tae Kyung responded.

"Wait, what?" Mi Nam asked, his steps faltering as he turned to look back at Tae Kyung.

But it was too late for any more explanation, because they were at the table, and their waiter was showing them their seats and setting the menus in front of them and asking for their drink orders.

Yoo He Yi joined them just as their drinks were arriving. "You got me tea?" was how she greeted the group.

He Yi was wearing a beautiful dress: form fitting but conservative, and in muted exotic colors, so that her outfit caught people's attention but didn't seem _flashy_.

Tae Kyung braced himself, because an outfit like _that_ meant that she had arrived at the restaurant with the intention of causing a scene and painting herself as a victim after the drama got underway. He'd seen his mother try the exact same trick.

However, before any scene could begin, Mi Nam said, "Wait, did you say that you had tea? No, that's for Mi Nyu. Here, have this, instead."

Mi Nam switched Mi Nyu and He Yi's drinks with a smile.

"This _is_ nice," Mi Nyu decided after trying a sip of the tea her brother had set in front of her.

"This is just water," Yoo He Yi declared after trying a sip of her own drink.

"Well you didn't want tea," Mi Nam reasoned.

"I – I didn't say that!" Yoo He Yi tried to argue.

"Well," Go Mi Nam said slowly, "Maybe if you had arrived on time, the waiter would have gotten your actual drink order."

"What?" Yoo He Yi stuttered. "I – I did arrive on time!"

"If that were true," Mi Nam countered, "You would have sat down with the rest of us. We all have _our _drinks. I guess you'll just have to wait until the waiter comes back to make your order."

Except that when the waiter came back to the table, Go Mi Nam took up all of the man's attention. He asked the man's name, his age, did he enjoy working for the restaurant? Have you had a good day today? And yes, Mi Nyu would like the soup dish, and Yae Kyung was allergic to such-and-such, so what other menu options were there? And all of those options sounded _horrible. _Could the chef maybe alter some of the main dishes so that they wouldn't include those items that Tae Kyung was allergic to? Yes, we'll wait for you to check.

And then, by the time the waiter returned, Yoo He Yi _still _hadn't received her drink, but they _had _to make sure that Tae Kyung didn't eat anything that would make him sick and-

Long story short... Yoo He Yi ate what Mi Nam ordered for her, and she never _did_ get a chance to ask for a different drink.

As the group was walking to their cars, Yoo He Yi threw up her hands and cried, "Why did I even come here today?"

And Go Mi Nam replied, "Hey, yeah, were you even _invited_?"

"Yes!" Yoo He Yi cried. "Go Mi Nam, you specificallyinvite me!"

"Oh. I think you received a text I meant to send to someone else," Go Mi Nam replied.

Yoo He Yi had sent her driver away, though, because she had agreed to spend her day at the agency with the other members of A.N. Jell. Soon, the four of them were sitting in the car and headed for the agency. Yoo He Yi insisted on sitting in the front with Tae Kyung, but she didn't actually speak with him, spending the ride sulking, instead.

In the back seat, Mi Nyu leaned over to her brother and hissed, "Oppa, what are you _doing_? I thought you _liked_ Yoo He Yi! Why are you being so mean to her?"

"I'm treating her the way that Tae Kyung treats her," he whispered back. "You heard him, didn't you? The meaner he is to her, the harder she tries for his attention. So if _I_ treat her that way..."

Mi Nyu didn't understand, and she told her brother as much.

"Tae Kyung seems to understand the way Yoo He Yi thinks," Mi Nam said dismissively. "Ask him latter. He'll be able to explain it. And thanks for helping me set this up, Sis. I know you don't like tricking people..."

"She's bothering Tae Kyung," Mi Nyu quietly answered. "As his assistant, it's my job to make sure he's comfortable and can focus on his work."

"I don't – that's not – Mi Nyu, seriously, you can be so naive."

* * *

"No one tells her no," Tae Kyung explained.

He and Mi Nyu had just arrived back at the dorms from their afternoon run, and they were drinking water in the kitchen. Shin Woo and Jeremy were at the table, as well, having their own conversation. But they stopped talking in order to listen to Tae Kyung's response when Mi Nyu had remembered to ask, "Why would treating her badly make Yoo He Yi like my brother?"

"Wait, what?" Jeremy asked.

"No one ever tells her no," Tae Kyung repeated. "She gets everything she wants, and so someone who tells her no becomes a challenge. As long as Mi Nam keeps her on her toes, she'll be interested in him."

"That... Sounds like a lot of work," Shin Woo murmured.

"But never boring," Jeremy put in. "So then... does that mean Mi Nam is going to start being mean to Yoo He Yi? That seems like it would be really difficult. She's so _nice_."

Mi Nyu and Tae Kyung remained suspiciously silent in response to that statement.

* * *

"You are such a liar," Yoo Hi Yi announced.

"What?" Mi Nam asked, looking up from his phone and staring at her. He looked around the cafe he was sitting in while he took a break from practice, wondering how she had found him here. No one knew that he left the agency for his breaks (except for his sister, but he doubted Yoo He Yi had thought to approach his sister about him).

"I said you're a liar," she said confidently. "You _did_ mean to text me all of those things. You weren't texting anyone else. You like _me_."

And Mi Nam had to ask himself _How would Tae Kyung respond in this situation?_

"Fine, you caught me," he told her. "I meant to send you all of those texts."

Then, without further explanation, he went back to looking at his phone. Because sure, he'd sent her multiple texts a day for several weeks. But after their lunch the other day, he hadn't tried contacting her at all (which had been a true feat of restraint on his part, because he really, really wanted to tell her how much he liked her).

"Then why are you acting like you don't like me anymore?" the woman pouted.

Looking up from his phone, Mi Nam told her, "I sent you texts every day, but you never responded to me. So clearly you're not as great as I thought you were. And why would I waste my time with someone who isn't amazing?"

"Ex-excuse me?" Yoo He Yi hissed, her eyes widening in disbelief and her cheeks coloring in embarrassment. "I am amazing! I'm one of the most popular actresses in the country!"

"Yeah, but... You're not a nice person. You're just... not that great," Mi Nam said again. "So... I guess that's it. And now I have to get back to practice, so I guess I'll see you around, Yoo He Yi."

Standing, Mi Nam grabbed his cup and started back to the agency.

It took a monumental effort not to look back over his shoulder as he walked away, but he managed to keep an even, steady pace as he started towards the agency.

Mi Nam was honestly surprised when Yoo He Yi caught up to him as he rounded the corner.

"You can't do this!" the woman cried. "Everyone likes me!"

"Well... I don't," Mi Nam said slowly. Because... was this act _actually_ working? He hadn't thought it would, when he'd started being mean to Yoo He Yi at the restaurant. Honestly, he'd started acting like this out of desperation, because he had done _everything_ he could think of to get her attention, otherwise. He'd made grand romantic gestures, he'd sent her flowers and jewelry, he'd showered her with praise and compliments, and this? This was his one last desperate attempt to get her attention.

And as he watched, Yoo He Yi's lips turned down in a pout, she stomped her foot in frustration, and she declared, "You can't do this to me, Go Mi Nam! Just you watch, I'll make you regret ever disregarding me!"

And then, her eyes began to fill with that same steely determination he'd seen in them that first time he'd met her at that restaurant. Except now, that look was there for _him_, rather than Tae Kyung.

_Yes_, Go Mi Nam thought.


	10. Chapter 10

"So then... _You_ would be our manager?" Shin Woo asked slowly. "And you'd stay here with us?"

That... sounded _perfect_.

It was ridiculous how quickly he was falling in love with Go Mi Nyu. She was just... perfect, as far as he was concerned. She was pretty, she was nice, and she was a hard worker. She took responsibility for her mistakes and did everything in her power to fix them, rather than trying to place blame elsewhere or ignoring the problem altogether. She cared deeply for her brother and friends, and she did everything in her power to offer them her support.

And the possibility of her leaving made him feel sick.

If she signed the contract, though, she was guaranteed to stay.

He was disappointed to see that she seemed uncertain about that possibility, though.

"Have you... talked to your brother or President Ahn about this?" Shin Woo asked.

She had only told him about this new development because he'd asked her if something was wrong. She had seemed uncertain and uneasy over the past few days, and Shin Woo had finally taken it upon himself to see if he could help her at all. Now, they were outside on the patio while the other members of A.N. Jell relaxed in the living room.

It was rare that Shin Woo got time alone with Mi Nyu, and he wanted to enjoy his time with her while it lasted, before Tae Kyung or her brother did something to distract her from him, as those two so often did.

"Not yet... After sending me the contract, President Ahn sent me another e-mail saying that I didn't immediately have to make a decision, but..."

"Then _don't_ make a decision," Shin Woo blurted. "Not yet. Talk to your brother about all of this. Take your time."

"He's been so busy with Yoo He Yi, though..."

"He'll want for you to include him in this decision," Shin Woo pressed. "He... He really likes having you around. And it really hurt him when you didn't go with him after you two graduated high school..."

"I know, but... I thought I could do the most good by staying at the Abby and becoming a nun..."

"You're doing a lot of good here, too, you know. You've taken a lot of pressure off of all of us by acting as our assistant. Tae Kyung hasn't been this relaxed in _years_. Not since I've met him, anyways. You're really good at your job, and if you left us... It would be really hard and it would take a lot of time to find someone else who does the job as well as you and gets along with everyone we work with as well as you do. Tae Kyung alone would run any other candidates off. I don't think you understand how much you mean to us."

"R-Really?"

"Of course, Mi Nyu. Just... take your time and talk to your brother before making any decisions, okay?"

"Yeah, I... Yeah. You're right Shin Woo. I really should talk to my brother. Thank you for talking with me today. I didn't mean to burden you with all of this."

"It's no burden," Shin Woo assured her.

He really liked that she felt like she could talk to him about this. He was about to tell her as much, too, but before he could say anything more, she gave a resolute nod and stood. "I'm going to go talk to my brother!" she declared.

She started into the house before Shin Woo had a chance to say anything more.

With a sigh, he stood up and followed her, resigned to the fact that he would have to wait until he had another opportunity to express himself to her.

He completely forgot about his missed opportunity after he went inside, however. He quickly discovered that there were _other_ matters to worry about.

* * *

"It's... It's an invasion," Tae Kyung muttered as President Ahn introduced Go Mi Nam and go Mi Nyu's aunt to the other members of the house.

Mi Nam was one thing. He was a member of the band, and he had already gone a long way in proving himself to be a hard worker and a good fit with the band with his performance the other day. Mi Nyu had proven herself useful, as well. She was an amazing assistant, and tormenting her was becoming one of Tae Kyung's favorite past times. Plus, she'd quickly learned how things worked in their household. She knew how Tae Kyung liked his food, she knew how he liked to organize his things, and she knew better than to touch his stuff.

But if this woman moved into the house... she would be an imposition. Tae Kyung could already tell that her situation was different from Mi Nyu's. This person wanted to move in because it would be a nice, free place to live, where as Mi Nyu had moved in so that she could reconnect with her brother.

This was _too much_.

"So it's settled!" President Ahn cried with an enthusiastic clap of his hands. "Aunt Go Mi Ja will move into the room with Mi Nyu, and Mi Nam will share with one of his band mates! Mi Nam, where do you want to sleep?"

_That_ wouldn't be Tae Kyung's problem, at least. Go Mi Nam wasn't stupid enough to-

"I'll stay with Tae Kyung," Mi Nam announced.

"_No_," Tae Kyung snarled.

"_Yes_," Mi Nam answered with a roll of his eyes. "Relax, dude. It will be fine. Come on, Sis. Come help me move my stuff. Manager Ma, President Ahn, you help our aunt get settled into her room!"

And just like that, everyone moved to aquiest to Mi Nam's demands.

"Whoa, whoa, what do you think you're doing?!" Tae Kyung cried, hurrying after the Go twins as they started upstairs.

"Well I'm not going to be a discomfort to Jeremy or Shin Woo!" Mi Nam answered.

"But you can be a discomfort to me?!" Tae Kyung snapped.

"Well, yeah. I don't care if _you_ get angry with me," Mi Nam answered.

"Oppa, please. Can't you just ask them if they'll mind?" Mi Nyu tried.

"It will be like a sleep-over!" Mi Nam declared. "We never got to have sleep-overs while we were growing up, since we lived in the orphanage."

"You are _not_ playing the orphan card for this!" Tae Kyung argued as they reached the twin's room and the two began to gather Mi Nam's things.

"And I bet tight-ass over here never got to have sleep-overs, either, since he had to spend all of his free time trying to get that stick out of his-"

"Mi Nam!" his sister cried. "_Really_, that's just uncalled for!"

In response, Mi Nam gave a deep sigh. "_Relax_," he again demanded. "I'm just messing with you, Tae Kyung! It's so easy to wind you up! Besides, Mi Nyu needed help memorizing all of those lists you used to give her, so I remember all of your anal-retentive eccentricities just as well as she does. I won't mess with your stuff. Plus, I need to study your behavior. I've got Yoo He Yi's attention now, and I need some ideas on how to keep it."

Tae Kyung stared at Mi Nam open mouthed, shocked by the other man's _blatant disrespect_, and left speechless by the fact that he was so utterly shameless.

Behind her brother, Mi Nyu was grimacing sympathetically, but was otherwise useless.

"This can not be happening," Tae Kyung groaned as Mi Nam shoved past him and started carrying his bags to Tae Kyung's room.

"He doesn't snore or drool or anything," Mi Nyu promised him as she passed by with her own armful of things. And then, with another grimace, she said, "He kicks, though."

"_This can not be happening!_"

* * *

"You are not sleeping _in my bed!_" Tae Kyung was saying.

"Why not?! Mi Nyu and I used to share all the time!"

"You slept in bed with your sister?!"

"Sometimes! The orphanage could be really lonely. In a place where no one really had anybody, it was a good reminder that we had each other, at least."

"Your sister says you kick!"

"Only because she's an aggressive cuddler. I need _some_ space, okay?"

"Menaces! You're both menaces!"

Tae Kyung looked like he was about to start pulling out his own hair. Seriously, Mi Nam wouldn't go to such great lengths to piss the guy off if he wasn't so funny when he was mad. Mi Nam half expected the guy to stomp his feet the way Yoo He Yi did when _she_ was having a tantrum.

"You were an only child, weren't you?" Mi Nam guessed as he settled against his pillows and took out the sheet music that Tae Kyung had given him to study earlier that week.

"I – What?"

"You've never had to share anything before, have you?" Mi Nam guessed. "You're so protective of _your _space and _your_ things. Sharing won't kill you, you know."

"And you're such an expert?" Tae Kyung snapped.

"Well, sure. I never had anything of my own growing up. I had to be really careful about keeping my cloths nice and clean, because someone else had worn them before me, and someone else would wear them after I had grown out of them. Then, since our lunches were packed for us, we didn't have any choice in what we ate and the food was never personalized to our tastes, so we'd trade and share food at lunch. I even had to share music lessons with my sister, even though _she_ didn't want to become a singer, and I did."

"Sounds exhausting," Tae Kyung snarked.

But Mi Nam could only smile. "I thought so. It really annoyed me, sometimes. I mean... I even share my _looks_ with my sister. When we were in middle school, no one could tell us apart. I couldn't wait to get away from my sister and have my own room, my own personal space, and my own life. After graduating and moving away, I made it a week before I went back to the Abbey and begged her to come with me. Living by myself was really, really lonely. You don't know how excited I was when I found out that the band lived in a dorm together."

Tae Kyung snorted, but he moved to sit on the bed, at least.

"No, I wouldn't know. I stayed in a hotel for our first month in the city. President Ahn _made_ me move here. I hated Shin Woo and Jeremy. Jeremy was always so noisy... and then he got that dog... And Shin Woo was always leaving his things sitting around... Have you seen their rooms?"

Curious, Mi Nam said, "No. What about them?"

"Those two are slobs. Jeremy's room is really cluttered – I don't know where he gets all of those little nick-knacks – and Shin Woo tosses clothing over his chairs, leaves his books on the floor, and there are always at least three used mugs on his table. I almost had a panic attack the first time I walked into the dorm and saw the kitchen and living room. Maybe their rooms are better since we got the maid, though..."

Mi Nam hummed. "They made us clean and tidy our spaces every day, at the orphanage. Now it's just habit."

"Good," Tae Kyung sighed. "If that's true, then maybe this won't be so bad after all... And as long as you don't kick. Seriously, if any part of you touches me at any time, I'll be waking you up with a bucket of water in the face."

"Fair enough," Mi Nam conceded while hiding his grin behind his papers. Because if he could get Tae Kyung to loosen up and relax, he could do anything.

_Including getting Yoo He Yi to love me_, he decided.

* * *

Every day before they started their run, Tae Kyung gave Mi Nyu a music player that had an hour's worth of songs loaded onto it.

"If you're going to work in the music industry, you have to be familiar with music," he informed her haughtily as they did their warm-up stretches. "We meet a lot of people on a regular basis, and it will be embarrassing if we speak with someone really famous and you have no idea who they are."

Mi Nyu didn't recognize many of the songs Tae Kyung had her listen to, but she liked most of what he picked for the music player. Tae Kyung made it so that each day, Mi Nyu listed to a different type of music. But the more music she heard, the more confused she became.

One day, when they had been running together for almost two weeks, Mi Nyu pulled the ear buds from her ears while they were waiting to cross an intersection, and she said, "You know a lot about music, don't you?"

"Of course," Tae Kyung replied. "It's what I do."

"How do you keep it all strait, though? There are so many different genres and styles!"

Looking at her from the corner of his eye, Tae Kyung said, "It's all about recognizing patterns. I'll explain it to you, but you have to listen closely and keep up. Got it?"

And then, as they began running again, Tae Kyung began to speak. He ran and talked for the next hour, and Mi Nyu dutifully ran along beside him, wondering at both his knowledge of the different types of music and at his ability to continuously talk while running at the same time. His lungs must have been really, _really_ strong.

Mi Nyu told his as much after they had finished their workout and were stretching.

With a smug grin, Tae Kyung said, "You'll be able to do the same, soon. You've already improved enough that you can run three miles at a time."

"I – What?" Mi Nyu asked, shocked. Because she and Tae Kyung hadn't gone for more than a mile and a half for the entire two weeks that they had been running together.

"We ran three miles today," Tae Kyung informed her. "And you didn't even notice, did you?"

"Well, no. I was listening to you..."

"I told you that you could do it if you stuck with it!" Tae Kyung said smugly.

And then, he smiled.


End file.
